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Article by BR Fiona
An interesting discussion appeared in the Beauty Review forums months ago about the benefits of oil pulling, so we decided to investigate this phenomenon. If you're curious, a convert or a complete virgin (get it virgin, virgin oil??) to this concept then read below and also check out the discussion in the forum!
What is the history?
Oil pulling has been around for a long time, in fact it has been used as an Indian folk remedy for thousands of years. It was originally mentioned in an Ayurvedic (a holistic healing system) text and was originally described as 'oil gargling'.
What is it?
Oil pulling is the process of putting oil in your mouth and 'swishing' it or 'pulling' it around your teeth and mouth. Start off by putting a tablespoon of oil in your mouth, cold pressed (raw) oil is said to be best to ensure you get an effective treatment, so try sesame oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil or olive oil. After 10-20 minutes, or as long as you can manage, spit it out and then rinse your mouth with sea salt, you should then follow this up with your normal teeth brushing routine. Oil pulling can be done at any time of the day but the best time to get optimal results is in the morning. Now if your mornings are anything like ours and there is no time to stand around for 10-20 minutes oil pulling then why not do it while you're in the shower? Simply swish while you're soaping up and scrubbing and spit when you're done. Multitasking ladies it's what we're all about, right?
What does it do?
Oil pulling is said to wash the teeth, gums, tongue and palate. Coconut oil in particular contains Lauric Acid which is a proven antimicrobial, which means it can kill off those nasty bacteria which linger around your molars, meaning less teeth and gum problems and better smelling breath. It has also been claimed, and please note that is CLAIMED, that it can help treat allergies, fatigue, diabetes, migraines, skin problems, asthma, insomnia, arthritis and join pain, though it is important to note that there is no research to back up these claims. So what does the research actually say about oil pulling?
What does the research say?
It's one thing to say that a product or treatment does something, but another to have it proved by rigorous testing, so what does this rigorous testing say about oil pulling? Unfortunately there hasn't been too much research undertaken on oil pulling, and those that have, have returned mixed results. A study done in 2008 by Asokan et al. found that oil pulling therapy can be effective on halitosis and organism associated with halitosis; in fact it was just as effective as chlorhexidine which is a common ingredient in mouth wash. In 2011 Lory Laughter did a search for studies on oil pulling therapy and found only two studies which confirmed the findings of Asokan et al. So yes it's been proven to help fight all those things your mouth wash does, but in a natural way, as for the rest of the claims we guess that comes down to personal experience! So what is oil pulling like?
It all comes down to personal experience…..
As stated about there is some evidence to support the oral therapy oil pulling but what is it like to actually do it? Well being the ever adventurist beauty reviewers that we are, we put it to the test. Here is Beauty Reviewer Fiona's experience….
"At first the thought of putting oil in my mouth made the stomach churn and the gag reflex start to tingle. I decided that perhaps it was best to try this out in the shower first time, this turned out to be a brilliant idea! Not only did it speed up the getting ready process in the morning but it also distracted you from what you were doing. Whilst soaping up my hair and scrubbing everything down it was quite natural to 'swish' the oil around in your mouth and I didn't have any time to 'think' about the fact that I had a tablespoon of sunflower oil in my mouth and in fact once the oil had warmed to body temperature in the mouth it was hardly noticeable. Did I last a full 20 minutes? I would say no….but I probably did a good 10 minutes. Once I spat out I noticed a slightly salty taste in my mouth and it felt a little coated….which I guess it was, with oil! But it was bearable; I certainly enjoyed cleaning my teeth afterwards. As for results, well only time will tell but if the thought of putting oil in your mouth makes you feel a little queasy I would recommend giving it a go because it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be!"
So what are you experiences and did you get the results you thought you would?
I am pretty keen on giving this a try, especially if it does really help with general well-being and health conditions.. Teeth whitening would just be the bonus!