Research Stories

Several chemicals present in plums, grapes and red wine can kill bacteria associated with gum disease – leading researchers to seek more natural remedies for oral health.

Periodontal disease is one of the commonest problems affecting dental health today. More usually known as gum disease or gingivitis, periodontitis is an inflammatory disease of the soft tissue and bones that support the teeth. Main symptoms are bleeding, sore gums, bad breath and later – if left untreated – loosening of the teeth and eventually their loss.

In the US, around 80 per cent of the population will suffer from it during their lives. While the figure is better in Hong Kong, dentists estimate that around 500,000 adults live with gum disease untreated and it is a major cause of general oral health problems.

Tooth loss in old age was once considered a natural eventuality, and one of its greatest accelerants was gum disease. But research has shown that attaining optimal oral health – and particularly staving off gum disease – can lead to healthy teeth for life.

And the really good news is: red wine might actually help. To be more accurate, a chemical found in red wine might help. “I’m afraid that just drinking red wine is not going to cure periodontitis,” laughs Dr Ricky Wong Wing-kit, Clinical Associate Professor of Orthodontics in Faculty of Dentistry. It is the resveratrol, found in the grapes, that is the key.

Through laboratory studies, Dr Wong and his research team tested resveratrol for in vitro activity against 12 bacteria and three fungi found in the mouth. The compound inhibited liquid cultures of the bacteria Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Porphyromonas gingivalis, completely killing both within six hours. It is hoped that after more research has been done on the killing mechanism and on bacteria living in the mouth, resveratrol could be developed into an alternative to antibiotics for gum disease.

"What we want to do is to utilise something that we drink every day that would be good for your health and oral hygiene."

Dr Ricky Wong

Dr Ricky Wong (second from the left) receives funding for the ‘prune mouthwash project’, with (from left to right) Professor Hagg, the then-Chair of Orthodontics, Dr Michelle Yuen, an MOrth student for part of the prune project, and Professor Samaranayake, Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry.

The full version of this article was originally published in Bulletin. Please click here to view this HKU publication.