Oil pulling is an ancient Ayurveda remedy based on holding and swishing plant oils in the mouth for some time to produce health benefits. The Indian mystics have termed the method as ‘Kavala Graha,’ though the western world knows it by the name of oil-pulling. This detox practice known to eliminate bad breath and strengthen your teeth has been around for over 3500 years. Moreover, the traditional school of medicine believes that oil pulling is useful for curing more than thirty systemic diseases.
You must be wondering how this technique works, the process of doing it, and other vital details about it. Here are all the answers that you should know.
How Does Oil Pulling Detox Work?
Oil pulling can activate the salivary enzymes that absorb all kinds of environmental, bacterial, and chemical toxins from the body. Thus the body is detoxified and purified from all harmful substances.
As you swish the oils around the mouth, the fatty acids (or lipids) present in it extract the potential toxins from the salivary glands, gums, and teeth. By using Lazarus Naturals CBD oil for oil pulling, you can get some positive impacts like reducing the severity of teeth and gum diseases.
In Ayurveda, the mouth is the mirror for your entire body. Thus, according to Vedic healers, there might be an illness present somewhere in the body when there is some imbalance in your oral cavity. It’s important to mention that modern medicine is yet to accept this practice, even though millions worldwide swear by the technique. If you have any doubts about the process, you can start in moderation and see whether it works for you.
What Is The Process Of Doing Oil Pulling?
The simplicity of the process of oil pulling will attract you towards it. You need to put a tablespoon of coconut, sunflower, or sesame oil in your mouth and swish it around for at least 20 minutes. While you swish it, make sure to reach all the areas of your gums and teeth and do not swallow any of it. Also, remember to do this before having your breakfast in the morning.
As a beginner, you will find it hard to swish the oil for more than five minutes. But after practicing every day, increase the time to do it fifteen to twenty minutes. After finishing, spit out the oil in your sink, and that’s it. Ideally, you should do it before each meal or at least three times every day. But it’s okay if you do it once a day if you are starting.
Oil Pulling Detox Symptoms
After starting or completing oil pulling, people experience some detox symptoms of oil pulling. Read through to know about them:
- Feeling nauseous after starting oil pulling is quite common. But it goes away after doing the therapy for 2-3 days. If the feeling continues even after three days, stop oil pulling.
- Some people experience sore throats and jaw after doing oil pulling for a few days. In that case, it is better to discontinue oil pulling or take the doctor’s advice.
- Sometimes the tooth becomes sensitive, which can lead to pain. Even the warmth or coldness of foods might affect the teeth.
- Upset stomach and diarrhea can occur after oil pulling, especially if any oil goes into your stomach.
- You can have severe headaches due to the continuous swishing of oil in the mouth.
- In rare cases, oil pulling can lead to lipid pneumonia in people who have been doing oil pulling for many days.
- Allergic reactions in the mouth or all over the body can occur due to oil pulling, mainly if you do not use pure oil or are allergic to any of the oil components.
Due to all these reasons, the ADA (American Dental Association) does not recommend oil pulling as a replacement for the clinically proven, standard oral health solutions. Even if you do it every day, do not stop brushing and flossing your teeth regularly.
Benefits of Oil Pulling Detox
1. Oil pulling detox helps address the symptoms of several oral issues like toothaches, sensitivity, tooth erosion, mouth sores, oral cancer, periodontal disease, tooth decay, bad breath, etc. One of the foremost benefits of the technique pertains to the prevention of plaque in the teeth. The oil is strong enough to destroy the microorganisms and bacteria that lead to plaque buildup in the mouth.
2. Moreover, oil pulling detox is seen as a highly reliable and natural way of whitening teeth and reducing gum inflammation. When combined with other maintaining oral hygiene methods, such as brushing twice daily, oil pulling can clean out the bacteria left on your gums or teeth. People have also claimed to have found it highly useful in chapped lips, throat, and dry mouth.
3. Some of the advantages of oil pulling become evident when you consider the benefits of the oils used in the process. Coconut oil has lauric acid that contains anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties to help prevent dental issues and improve oral health. Moreover, it can stop the activity of an acid-producing bacteria called Streptococcus mutans in the mouth – Athlone Institute of Technology and its Irish researchers reported.
4. Oil pulling is also capable of reducing many hormonal issues, ailments related to digestion, and heart, according to Ukraine’s Dr. Fedor Karach. Besides the plethora of benefits mentioned above, oil pulling also reduces acne, wrinkles, and scaly and itchy skin. So, there is more than one reason for you to give it a try.
5. Several studies have found that oil pulling has its benefits in reducing the symptoms of some health problems, but no clinical evidence has been available in many other cases. The Indian Journal of Dental Research published a study in 2009 that showed that sesame oil pulling worked better than a mouthwash in reducing gingivitis, controlling plaque, and lowering the amount of plaque-causing microorganisms in adolescents.
6. Another research of 2011 claimed that oil pulling is almost as efficient as chlorhexidine in treating bad breath. The researchers concluded that using oils like sesame or sunflower eliminated the microbes causing bad breath.
Summing Up
Indeed, modern science does not present any substantial evidence in terms of the effectiveness of oil pulling. But Ayurveda has believed in it for over three thousand years, and so has millions of people around the world.
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