Improve Your Oral Health With Oil Pulling
Because the dentist hurts your pocket as well as your mouth.
Oral health
Going to the dentist is painful in more ways than one.
It sometimes hurts your pocket more than your mouth.
Having a mouth full of cavities hurts your looks, self-esteem, and pains those who come into close contact with you.
This is where oil pulling can prove to be an effective arsenal in the fight for your oral health.
Dental problems do not only affect our mouths, science has found cause and effect links between tooth decay and many forms of diseases.
Let us look at some of the ways we acquire dental issues: —
- Anxiety disorders can cause dental problems. Grinding or clenching your teeth during an anxiety attack. Over time this practice will damage your teeth. The mechanical pressure may also cause your tooth to develop a fracture. Eventually, all roads lead to dental caries if not managed correctly.
- Problems such as anorexia will cause your body to have nutritional deficiencies in vitamins and minerals. The deficiency will contribute to tooth decay, dry mouth, and gum disease.
- The eating disorder Bulimia is another contributor to tooth decay and dental diseases. Due to frequent vomiting, stomach acid comes into contact with tooth enamel and begins to erode it.
- Acid reflux and pregnancy hyperemesis, frequent vomiting causes tooth erosion leading to decay and/or mechanical issues such as fractures.
- Cancers of the mouth and throat — chemo and radiation can damage salivary glands and oral tissue, which can lead to thick, sticky saliva and dry mouth. A dry mouth increases your chances of tooth decay and oral infections.
- Diabetes — causes a lack of saliva in the mouth leaving the mouth exposed to decay-causing bacteria.
- Malnutrition — Nutrient deficiencies leading to weak tooth structures and diseases of the oral cavity.
- Autoimmune diseases — are conditions in which the body attacks itself. These diseases can involve different parts of the body. Diseases such as Sjören’s Syndrome and Crohn’s disease work by causing dry mouth. Saliva protects our teeth against decay-causing bacteria. In the absence of adequate saliva, bacteria build-up leads to tooth decay.
- Certain foods — for example, sugary foods, acidic foods, and even salty foods can impact the structure of your tooth.
What is Oil pulling?
Oil pulling is an ancient ayurvedic technique used for maintaining oral health. The hypothesis behind oil pulling lies in the belief that the tongue is connected to many organs in our bodies.
Those organs are the kidneys, heart, lungs, small intestine, and our spinel column. Oil pulling is utilized to help in the removal of toxic heavy metals with the aid of saliva.
The process of oil pulling activates salivary enzymes which absorb toxins. It is thought that the toxins are removed from the body via the tongue thus detoxifying the entire human body.
Your mouth is extremely vascular and permeable. This is why many medicines can be given orally and are immediately absorbed into the bloodstream.
Oil pulling works by generating antioxidants which damage the cell wall of microorganisms. These oils will attract the fatty layer of bacterial cell membranes and cause them to stick or be attracted to the oil and be removed.
During the process of oil pulling, the oil also coats your teeth and gingiva inhibiting bacteria and plaque formation
Why you should oil pull?
Your mouth is considered as the looking glass into your health. It usually harbors huge quantities of microorganisms.
Some of these microorganisms contribute to the development and/or progression of many diseases such as cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.
Our general health but more specifically your oral health is acutely interrelated. It is therefore of extreme importance that you maintain optimum oral health.
How to perform oil pulling
- Do not perform any oral hygiene before oil pulling.
- Use one tablespoon of oil. You may use coconut oil, sunflower, sesame, or olive oil. The first cold-press oil is best. (Coconut oil has anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties)
- Swish the oil around in your mouth for 5–20 minutes, being careful not to swallow any (the oil will contain the bacteria and toxins it collected). As you practice you will be able to oil pull for longer periods of time.
- Spit the oil into a trash can once you’re done (do not spit in your sink at the risk of clogging your plumbing).
- Rinse your mouth well using warm water before eating or drinking anything.
What science has deduced
Studies performed where participants performed oil pulling early in the morning on an empty stomach, before their usual oral hygiene measures such as brushing and flossing.
Four hours after performing oil pulling, the Modified Gingival Index and plaque index showed a steady decline from day seven.
By day 30, plaque and gingival indices were significantly decreased. By week seven it was further reduced to about 50% when compared with the use of chlorhexidine.
Scientists concluded that oil pulling using coconut oil is effective in reducing plaque formation as well as plaque-induced gingivitis.
Coconut oil reigns supreme
Coconut oil contains lauric acid which reacts with alkalis present in saliva such as sodium hydroxide and bicarbonates to form a sodium laureate-soap-like substance. This soap-like substance reduces plaque adhesion aggregation.
Lauric acid has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory properties to prevent dental caries, and is beneficial to oral health.
Coconut oil has proven to be effective against Streptococcus and Candida. It has antiseptic properties and can be safely used as an emollient and moisturizer.
Coconut oil has no known adverse effects.
Conclusion
It is imperative that we practice good oral hygiene. Science tells us that a healthy mouth can have benefits that are far-reaching beyond that of our mouths. They can severely impact the quality of our lives.
At the first sign of oral problems visit your dentist. Dental work is easier and cheaper to fix when the problem is small.
If the discord is due to a systemic disease see an internist and have the issues addressed. Your doctor can also discuss ways to manage your disease and in so doing limit or reverse its progression.
If you grind your teeth you can be fitted with a mouth guard. For dry mouth carry water with you and take frequent sips, or suck on sugar-free candy.
Finally, give oil pulling a try, it is an ancient technique practiced in India and other parts of Asia. The health benefits have been studied and proven to be true.
Oil pulling is purported to increase your metabolism while capturing bacteria and removing toxins. In so doing it heals our cells, tissues, and organs and improves our longevity.
An improvement in oral hygiene is usually noticed within the first two weeks of practicing the correct method of oil pulling.
Brush and floss regularly. Exercise, eat a balanced diet, have regular dental check-ups, and stay appropriately hydrated.
Remember your oral health is the key to your overall health.
Take care of your mouth!