Dentists will tell you that genetics and “proper” dental care and fluoride treatments will result in healthy teeth and gums. However, we know that indigenous tribes who ate healthy diets enjoyed remarkably good dental health. When indigenous tribes were introduced to the Western diet, disease, including oral disease, followed.
The truth is, the most important action you can take to maintain oral health is to eat a healthy diet. Avoid all artificial additives (flavors, colors, preservatives), GMOs, pasteurized dairy, and refined sugars. Do not consume foods laden with herbicides and preservatives (especially the “dirty dozen”) or animal protein (meat or dairy) from factory raised animals or farm raised fish. The healthiest diet consists of whole unadulterated foods, 80% of which are raw, organic vegetables and fruits (and eat more vegetables than fruit).
It is possible, through a truly healthy diet and proper oral care, to whiten and re-mineralize your teeth, to re-build your enamel, and to heal your gums.
If you have dental problems, oil pulling is a good practice to incorporate into your daily routine. In the morning, before you eat or drink anything, take a spoonful of coconut oil or sesame oil and swish it through your mouth and teeth for 15-20 minutes. Keep squeezing it through your teeth with your tongue, swishing it back and forth. This is an ancient Ayurvedic practice (from Hindu traditional medicine) that is catching on in the West with wonderful reports of how it heals and aids teeth and gums. It is also claimed that this practice pulls toxins out of the body, healing all manner of illness.
We’ve been raised to believe that eating candy creates cavities. While it is true that refined sugar will feed the bacteria in your mouth, the greater risk is the fact that the body leeches minerals such as calcium out of our bones and teeth and draws it into the bloodstream to stabilize the pH in our blood, a pH the sugar has altered.
If you are not healthy, you need to brush gently. Hard brushing will tear up your gums and strip the enamel from your teeth. If you are in good health, a more rigorous brushing will stimulate blood flow and re-mineralization. Regardless of your health, a good, soft toothbrush is a must. Proper technique is important as well. Use a circular motion to brush teeth and gums, and don’t forget to brush the roof of your mouth and your tongue.
But what will you use on your toothbrush? Commercial toothpaste is toxic. Fluoride is not the only ingredient to avoid. Many commercial toothpastes include saccharine or aspartame, artificial dyes, sodium lauryl sufate, and/or triclosan.
You can avoid most of these ingredients by using a ridiculously expensive natural toothpaste. But many still contain sodium laureth sulfate or other questionable ingredients such as glycerin, which prevents re-mineralization.
As I read the label on my all natural, fluoride free, SLS-free toothpaste, I saw that it did not have any of the other horrific ingredients in commercial toothpastes. It says: no sodium laurel/ laureth sulfates, no preservatives, no artificial colors, no artificial sweeteners, no saccharin, no propylene glycol. Though the tube told me a lot about what it didn’t have, I had to go online to find the actual ingredients. And I sure did want to know what the ingredients were because I had never noticed this warning: “Keep out of the reach of children under 6 years of age. If you accidentally swallow more than used for brushing, seek professional assistance or contact Poison Control Center immediately.” I am happy to say that I called and confirmed that the government requires toothpaste companies to place this warning on toothpaste tubes since it is not made for consumption, regardless of whether there are poisonous materials contained.
The only one ingredient that concerned me was carrageenan, which is known to promote inflammation.
This is why I decided to make my own toothpaste with ingredients that I trusted. I was getting a lot of cavities at one point for eating lots of dried fruit. Then I started making my own toothpaste with plant extracts, clay, coconut oil and started seeing the miraculous effects my mouth was having. The cavities stopped growing and stopped appearing. There is absolutely no need to add all those other ingredients to your mouth, when your body really craves an alkaline solution, that is anti-inflammatory with anti-viral/microbial support (which herbs tend to have tons of!)
Using ingredients like herbal extracts, unrefined clay and raw oils to enhance your oral ecology. In our plant paste we use herbal powerhouses such as clove, neem and myrrh - which are known for their anti-microbial and anti-viral properties, to protect from cavities and bacteria. Coconut oil for its highly mineralizing, restorative and protecting nature. And, unrefined clay and baking soda to detoxify and alkalize the mouth — they also help in activating enzymes directly in the mouth.
A study on Neem and how it’s a panacea for dentists
A study on Myrrh preventing infections
A bit on oil pulling:
Oil pulling is a folk remedy that originated in India (and appears in an early text of Ayurvedic medicine, aka traditional Indian medicine, which is considered alternative medicine, the Charaka Samhita.) You take a tablespoon of oil (many sites recommend sesame oil as the number one best friend of all possible oils, but others swear by coconut or sunflower, while others warn against coconut) into your mouth by morning and swish or pull it around and through your teeth and gums without swallowing it. You do this for about 20 minutes. Then you spit it out. By the act's end, the oil is supposed to go from being clear to a white, milky substance, as it is now loaded with toxins and bacteria it has drawn out via all that swishing. Dentists have proven that oil pulling does reduce bacteria in the mouth — at least one study has shown it significantly reduces the strep mutans bacteria in plaque and saliva that causes cavities.
How oil pulling, or coconut oil rich tooth paste’s can help:
+ Whitens teeth
+ Strengthens your gums/teeth/& jaw. It helps with sensitive teeth & even has reported to help TMJ sufferers like myself.
+ Prevents cavities & gingivitis. Some people even reported it HEALED their cavities?! Not sure about that one… but who knows?!
+ Helps get rid of acne/ eczema/ psoriasis/ & other skin care issues.
+ General body detox.
+ Cures a hangover (hallelujah!) & a migraine.
+ Helps with sleep issues.
+ Clears out your sinuses & helps allergy sufferers.
+ If you have halitosis, oil pulling has been a big savior for many sufferers & your morning breath will get MUCH better (you can now kiss your S.O. good morning w/o them cringing!).
+ Helps with general pain issues.
+ Manages any weird hormonal imbalances.
+ & so so so so much more.
HEALTHY TEETH
R I T U A L S
- Tooth mask. Apply onto your teeth and allow it to stay on your teeth for about 2-5minutes. Then brush off with warm water.
- Brush your teeth. Brush your teeth with the paste and enjoy the effects on how your gums start feeling as well as how your teeth start whitening! You can also use it as an adjunct mineralizing therapy to your regular brushing routine.
- Combine with your oil pulling routine. Add the tip of a spoon into your coconut oil and swish very well in your mouth for an extra mineralized experience.
