coffee = good breath???

after recently coming across a snippet in a random online iowa newspaper article that i found who knows where, i was just as shocked as you to find out that coffee could have such a positive effect on breath. makes me love it even more ;)

i researched a little more and here's what i found:

...intriguing research from Tel Aviv University by renowned breath specialist Prof. Mel Rosenberg of TAU’s Sackler Faculty of Medicine finds that a coffee extract can inhibit the bacteria that lead to bad breath. New laboratory tests have shown that the extract prevents malodorous bacteria from making their presence felt ― or smelt. “Everybody thinks that coffee causes bad breath,” says Prof. Rosenberg, “and it’s often true, because coffee, which has a dehydrating effect in the mouth, becomes potent when mixed with milk, and can ferment into smelly substances.” But not always. “Contrary to our expectations, we found some components in coffee that actually inhibit bad breath,” explains Prof. Rosenberg. The findings were presented last month to members of the International Society for Breath Odor Research in Germany by Yael Gov, a researcher in Prof. Rosenberg’s laboratory. A “Taster’s Choice” for Stopping Bad Bacteria: In the laboratory, the team monitored the bacterial odor production of coffee in saliva.
– Tel Aviv University Researchers

tic tac schmic schmac!

-h