A practice that has actually been around a lot longer than people realize called ‘oil pulling’ has gained a surge in notoriety among the natural health community again over the past few years. Oil pulling is a practice that some say immensely improves the overall health of your entire mouth. This includes the gums and teeth.

Some claim it has totally reversed the health and strength of their teeth, and even helped strengthen previously thin or weak enamel. There are plenty of miraculous stories if you go out and find them, but let’s first just talk about what oil pulling is, how to do it and what it may actually be able to do for your teeth and gums.

Dental and oral health is incredibly important. In fact, poor dental and gum health has been linked to a variety of other poor health indicators. There are even studies that link poor dental health to and increased risk of cancer, and an increased risk of another major mortality contributor – heart disease.

What Exactly is ‘Oil Pulling’?

Oil pulling is pretty simple. You use an oil of your choice – most commonly solid coconut oil. Roughly half a tablespoon to a full tablespoon should suffice, it depends on the user really. Once it melts, which will be pretty much instantly, you begin swishing the liquified oil around in your mouth, and “pulling” it between your teeth and around your gums. Related: Coconut Oil Helps Reduce Porosity in Hair

The duration of this swishing and pulling action should be roughly 20 minutes. Why? This is about the time it takes for the oil to ‘pull out’ the damaging bacteria that linger in places where it’s very hard to get to. Flossing and regular antibacterial mouthwashes can only do so much to get to this hard to reach destructive bacteria.

Why Oil?

Oil has a viscosity that allows it to easily infiltrate narrow opening and tiny crevasses. Our mouth is full of them. There is hardly any space between healthy teeth, and the oil can easily seep into those areas. It also has the ability to sweep up the bacteria that lives there.

Mouthwash can do this to some degree, but oils really have the ability to get into places and attract this type of bacteria like a magnet due to their consistency. Many types of oil, in and of themselves, also contain antibacterial properties. This of course adds to the effectiveness of oil pulling.

Whiter Teeth?

Some claim that oil pulling regularly can lead to whiter, brighter teeth. Although I’m not sure if this is backed by any sort of mechanism that would achieve a whitening result, it’s a reputed side effect of oil pulling. It could be that the long term action of swishing a clarifying and pulling oil would have some sort of whitening action on the teeth simply due to the fact that you’re really getting a thorough, deep cleanse.

There may also be a connection to whitening due to the effect of breaking up plaque. Oil pulling can help break up plaque-causing bacteria. Plaque is thought to be one of the reasons teeth appear yellow as we age. There is of course also the fact that oil pulling simply may “pull” stains out of your teeth over time simply due to the constant swishing action, and as mentioned before, the “deep clean” achieved.

What Type of Oil to Use?

Although solid coconut oil is still the most popular type of oil, sesame oil is also a good oil for pulling. Sesame oil is thought to have even more antibacterial properties than coconut oil. Read about natural sunscreens – sesame oil is supposed to be an excellent natural sunscreen also!

I’ve thought about trying this instead of coconut oil (disclaimer, I use coconut oil to pull myself). However, I just can’t imagine swishing sesame oil around in my mouth for twenty minutes. Don’t get me wrong, I love the flavor, but I need something a little more neutral tasting!

What You Might Expect From Oil Pulling – My Review and Experience

Everyone’s experience with this practice is going to obviously differ, so let me tell you about my experience thus far. I started oil pulling when I read about the benefits for people who are concerned about their gum health.

I was having a period of time where my gums were hassling me with pain when I would eat foods that tend to get stuck in the teeth, like stringy pieces of vegetables or meat. I knew I had some pretty serious gum pockets going on, and was worried for the health of my mouth.

That was a few years ago and the rest is history. I have mostly tried to keep up with it. If I don’t do it every day, I target about 4 days a week. I do it before I’ve had anything to eat ideally. I do it for a full twenty-minute duration, and I do use an organic coconut oil (solid). I have definitely noticed a difference in the health and strength of my teeth. I can’t say I’ve noticed a huge whitening effect.

However I do drink two cups of black coffee every morning, so I’m probably reversing any whitening effects. My gums are in great health. My teeth are too, and although I do have a case of internal resorption that is supposedly irreversible and only treatable with endodontist intervention, I’ve been given the go ahead to hold status quo and see if I can hold this condition where it’s at.

I have really been increasing my oil pulling to help aid in any way the natural healing and health of my teeth, and ‘what can it hurt’ anyway. A great side benefit is much better breath AND a much cleaner feeling mouth. Related: Lemongrass Mouthwash - Can This Improve Oral Health?

While it’s annoying (especially to your spouse) that you can barely speak for 20 minutes unless you want to make a mess, I will continue this practice for the rest of my natural life. I have yet to get a cavity – knock on wood!