Most people consider green tea to be a very healthy thing to drink. Green tea is filled with antioxidants, and if you choose the right brands, it's often available without any sugar. On the surface, it might seem like this beverage has no harm in store for your teeth. Unfortunately, it actually might. If you regularly sip bottled green tea, here's what you need to be concerned about, and why you should see your dentist about it.

Ascorbic Acid

If you have any bottled green tea lying around, take a quick look at the ingredients and nutritional label. Does the nutritional label state that the product contains some of your vitamin C for the day, or do the ingredients mention ascorbic acid? If so, the tea you're currently enjoying could be harming your teeth.

Vitamin C is added to a wide variety of tea products, whether or not they contain sugar and additional flavorings. Unfortunately, ascorbic acid can be dangerous for your teeth. If this acid is consumed often enough, it can damage the enamel of your teeth and allow them to be attacked by things like bacteria, or it can lead to a cavity over time.

Why It's Used

Ascorbic acid is used in green tea for a couple of reasons. One reason is that vitamin C is good for you, and many tea manufacturers add it to their beverages to boost your vitamin C intake. This is most common on tea products that are sold as being healthy or good for your immune system.

Alternatively, your tea company may be using it to protect the product from going bad. Ascorbic acid is a type of natural preservative that can be helpful in keeping certain drinks fresh, like tea.

What to Do

If the tea you're currently drinking contains ascorbic acid, you have a few choices to protect your teeth.

One possible option is to rinse your teeth with water after you've been drinking the tea. This will help to loosen the acids and prevent them from severely damaging your teeth. However, if you're sipping the tea regularly, it could still cause problems over enough time.

A better option is to brew your own tea at home if you can't find green tea without ascorbic acid in stores. Home-brewed green tea is healthy and inexpensive, and you can simply bottle it yourself in a reusable bottle once it's finished steeping for convenience.

Green tea can be a very healthy choice, but it's important to drink the right kind that doesn't have sugar or vitamin C added to it. Remember to take a careful look at the ingredients label before buying tea and your teeth will be healthier for it.