Drinking at least one cup of green tea a day increases the odds of keeping your teeth as you age, according to Japanese research.
More than 25,000 people aged between age 40 and 64 years were studied.
Results showed men who drank at least one cup of tea a day were 19 per cent less likely to have fewer than 20 teeth (a full set including wisdom teeth is 32) compared to those who did not drink green tea.
Tea-drinking women had 13 per cent lower odds, said Preventive Medicine.
The researchers suggest the antimicrobial molecules, called catechins, in green tea and in lesser amounts in oolong tea provide the benefit.
But sweeteners could cancel the effect, the team found, with sweet coffee, for instance, damaging teeth.
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