Do you wish your teeth were whiter, but don’t want to spend the money or expose yourself to the chemicals in tooth whitening procedures?
Me, too! That’s why I’m glad I found oil pulling. Today I’m going to tell you how to strengthen and
whiten your teeth naturally–with coconut oil!
When I first tried oil pulling, I admit it wasn’t for cosmetic reasons. I had the beginning of two cavities in my lower molars, and had heard that swishing with coconut oil could help strengthen my teeth.
A month later, not only had the pain in my teeth disappeared, but my teeth felt cleaner, too!
I was delighted to find such a low-key, low-cost treatment for my teeth. Next, my husband tried it and in two months oil pulling had healed a nasty cavity in his wisdom tooth (I tell the whole amazing story here!). Not only that, but the discoloration and stains he’d had on his teeth from years of coffee drinking had disappeared and his teeth were the whitest they’d ever been! That’s when we both became sold out on oil pulling for tooth health AND great smiles.
How you do it
- scoop about 2 tsp. of coconut oil out of your jar and pop it in your mouth.
- chew or hold the oil in your mouth till it melts and becomes liquid
- start swishing, pulling the oil back and forth and sideways through all your teeth
- swish for 20 min., spitting the oil out (into the trash) when you’re finished
Why it works:
Oil itself has the ability to cut right through plaque to the tooth surface, and coconut oil in particular has rich, anti-bacterial properties. The oil draws toxins and bacteria out of the teeth, and becomes a vehicle to dispose of toxins. Also, we’ve found the swishing action can be as effective as flossing, without any damage to gums (yes–I’ve gotten popcorn kernels out with oil pulling!)
Where to get good coconut oil:
Any organic, cold-pressed, virgin coconut oil will work for this. If it smells like coconut, that’s a sign that it hasn’t been over-processed and still has all the wonderful things God put in the coconut to begin with! I recommend Tropical Traditions or Green Pastures.
A few more suggestions:
Some people have trouble with the taste or feel of the oil, or with their mouth just getting tired of swishing. Try working your way up in increments to the 20 min. goal. A friend of mine started out only able to do 5 min. at a time, but is now up to 15. She says watching a movie while swishing helps.
It’s recommended that you swish first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach. You could keep a jar of oil on your night stand or in the bathroom. My husband swishes while putting his contacts in and going through his morning routine. I swish while I make breakfast or exercising.
Further reading:
Oil Pulling for Oral Health on Wellness Mamma
Oil Pulling: History, Techniques and Success Stories on Kitchen Stewardship
Oil Pulling Therapy by Bruce Fife
Healing Cavities (A True “We’ve Done It!” Story) on Trinaholden.com
Have you ever tried oil pulling or other natural tooth care?
Share with us your experiences in the comments!
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About Trina Holden
Trina is passionate about anything that brings more health and beauty to our days. She loves avocados, thrift shopping, and traveling with her man. You can find her wearing purple most days while homeschooling 3 kids and writing her heart out at trinaholden.com
hello Trina, I hope I am not too late in asking you this question – in the above article, you mentioned:
Next, my husband tried it and in two months oil pulling had healed a nasty cavity in his wisdom tooth (I tell the whole amazing story here!).
I couldn’t find the link to the amazing story of your husband’s wisdom tooth cavity and I am dying to know… I have a broken tooth and I don’t have dental insurance so I would love to read more on this and to know what type/name brand of coconut oil that you use. Please email me or leave a comment over at my blog so that I am alerted to your response.
Thanks much!! 🙂
Oh my… would love to try this method but I’m just not sure I could swish anything around in my mouth for 20 minutes… even water for that long would probably be a challenge. I suppose doing this in the shower and during the morning routine could make it easier. Do the teeth whiten after the first usage?
Not necessarily after one use, Diane, but we saw progress in a month!
Tried this for the first time yesterday morning. It was a little “harder” than I thought it might be. I used good quality coconut oil and the procedure is very simple, it was trying to keep it swishing around in my mouth for that long! 😛 I swished for around 15 min. Guess I’ll have to work up to 20… I imagine it will get easier with practice. Also, I didn’t think it was gross. A bit strange, perhaps, but not nasty.
My dad had found suggestions for oil pulling earlier this year, and a few of our family has tried it. My mother and I, in the end, ceased using this method, simply because it grosses us out a little. The taste of the oil (we used something other than coconut oil though…canola perhaps? I can’t remember.) and then spitting out the “gunk” from our teeth made us sick. :/ Admittedly, it’s better not to have that on your teeth, but we just haven’t been able to manage it again and to keep it in practice. It just didnt’ work for us. But my dad still does this. 🙂
hmmm, Rachel, I can imagine the canola oil would be kinda gross! I feel the type of oil you choose makes a huge difference. I find coconut oil very palatable and don’t mind eating it by the (small) spoonful sometimes!
My family is has been using coconut oil ever since I read your article on oil pulling 🙂
How often do you regularly do this? I don’t have issues with my teeth, but would love the preventative and whitening benefits… Would once or twice a week help me with this, or is every day necessary?
I’m curious about this too! I would think once a week would be better than never, but not sure if not doing it daily nulls the effects or not. Hope Trina stops by and can relieve our curiosity! 🙂