Oil Pulling

Posted on Jul 11, 2014 | 0 comments

Perhaps you have heard about the new rage ‘oil pulling’ or ‘oil swooshing’?

In case you have not, oil swooshing is a practice that began over 2,500 years ago, but is making a comeback as many celebrities are promoting it’s use. It is based on Indian traditional medicine, or Ayurveda, and the core concept that oil is nourishing to body tissue.

To swoosh, you put between a teaspoon and a tablespoon (however much you can handle) into your mouth and swish it around for anywhere between 5 minutes and 20 minutes – ideally 20 minutes. The oil fights all of the bad bacteria in your mouth and works to improve your oral health.

Why do you do oil pulling?

There are several reported benefits to oil swooshing or oil pulling. The top ones being:

Whiter teeth
Cavity prevention
Gingivitis prevention
Fresher breath, improved morning breath
Stronger teeth and gums
Less jaw pain and sinus issues
Better sleep
Takes the pain away from headaches and hangovers
Improves skin issues (acne, psoriasis and eczema to name a few)

What kind of oil should I use to do oil pulling?

Along with most people, I choose to use coconut oil. It has strong antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties and I do believe it is so beneficial in many ways to us. But you can use any type of vegetable oil you would like to use.

How do I swoosh?

Take anywhere from a teaspoon to a tablespoon of your oil of choice, put it in your mouth and swoosh it around for up to 20 minutes. Try to really work it through your gums and teeth. DO NOT SWALLOW. It collects all of the nasty toxins out of your mouth so you must make sure to spit this out into your bin (it will clog your drain if you spit in there).

My Experience with Oil Pulling?

My goal: one full week. Each day, in the morning, I will do oil pulling using 1 tbsp. for 15 minutes.

My first experience with oil pulling was pretty surprising. I gagged a little bit upon the first taste of oil. I am not used to oil in my mouth. But the taste of the coconut oil is surprisingly light and good so after that initial reminding to myself that I am not swallowing this, just swishing it, I settled down and it was fine. I kept about ¾ of a tablespoon in for about 11 minutes. I then spit it out, flossed and brushed.
WOW!! I did not expect the results, especially with just one try. My teeth were definitely whiter and my mouth tingled in that just got cleaned way. It felt great! I did experience a mild headache, which is said to be normal and a result of the toxins being released. But it went away after about an hour and my mouth felt so good! I continued it every day for the week.

I really was surprised that oil pulling left my mouth feeling so great!

The first day held the most dramatic results for me, however, my mouth did feel extra clean each day and by the third day I was no longer getting the headache. I used a teaspoon of coconut oil and did the oil pulling for 12 minutes each day.