Oral care is often the most neglected practice in our daily life. We start our day by brushing our teeth but forget about oral hygiene after that. Oral hygiene has more to do with just brushing your teeth every day.
Proper oral care practice does not focus on just how the teeth look but also the overall health of the oral cavity. Oral care includes gums, tongue, and teeth. Not having proper oral care can result in cavities, bad breath, plagues, and other conditions that need surgery to fix the damage that is caused.
Starting to care for your oral health before it is too late avoids a lot of issues. If you are looking for ways to improve your oral health, then this list is for you. It is also important to choose a routine that suits you the best and helps your symptoms get better.
A lot of people are making a switch to Ayurveda when it comes to oral care. Practices like gandusha kriya are becoming popular among people. Here are 5 ways you can improve your oral health.
5 Best Ayurvedic Oral Care Practices
Oil Pulling
Oil pulling is also known as gandusha kriya is an ancient remedy to freshen your breath and keep your teeth enamel healthy. Oil pulling involves swishing a considerable amount of oil in your mouth like a mouth wash for about 15 minutes.
This practice is said to kill the harmful bacteria in your mouth that forms a layer on the teeth causing odor and plaque. You can do oil pulling preferably with an extra virgin coconut oil for best results. You can also use castor oil or gingelly oil.
Oil pulling also helps in controlling gingivitis, also known as gum inflammation. This is caused by plaque accumulation between the teeth and the gum pockets.
Use a Tongue Scraper
Tongue scraping hosts a lot of benefits for the organ of taste and speech. The tongue has a lot of taste buds that process taste and scraping helps in activating the taste buds.
Tongue scraping in the morning also removes toxins from the body that helps in improving the flavor of your food.
You can use a stainless steel tongue scraper to gently stroke your tongue. You can get a tongue scraper from the stores nearby or online.
Massage the Gums with Coconut Oil
Massaging coconut oil on your gums every alternate day helps in soothing gingivitis. Gingivitis is the inflammation of gums that is caused because of bacteria accumulation in the teeth. Gingivitis can lead to bleeding and receding gums.
Gingivitis weakens the structure of the tooth that might even lead to loss of the tooth. Applying coconut oil on your gums helps to soothe the inflammation and also keeps the bacterias in control.
Chew on Neem Twigs
Neem has antimicrobial properties that release antibacterial agents that mix with saliva. This kills harmful microbes in the mouth that leads to the accumulation of bacteria in the mouth. Neem’s anti-microbial properties prevent plaque accumulation on the teeth.
Peel the skin of the neem twig that is as thick as your little finger. Chew at one corner of your mouth and spit the saliva in short intervals. Brush across your teeth and gums and spit out the neem fibers.
Gargle with Saltwater
Gargling with salt water is a simple yet effective home remedy for bad breath and gingivitis. Saltwater gargling thrice or four times a week controls the growth of bacteria. This is also an effective remedy to ease pain post-surgery and also promotes faster healing.
Add a half spoon of rock salt to a cup of warm water. Gargle the water for 30 seconds and spit it out. Make sure the water is not very hot as that might damage the enamel of the teeth.
Be careful about using this remedy as too much sodium can negate the results. Do not swallow the saltwater as saltwater causes dehydration.
Good oral hygiene keeps your teeth and gums healthy for a longer time. As you age, there are many complications such as teeth sensitivity, bleeding gums, cavities. This steals the joy of experiencing your favorite food. Having an oral care routine delays the issues and helps you live a peaceful life.
If your symptoms persist even after trying out the remedies, make an appointment with the dentist as early as possible. Symptoms such as persisting tooth pain and bleeding of gums should not be ignored.