Oil pulling - has anyone heard of this or tried it?

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

http://www.oilpulling.com/

Hmm, I am tempted to try this. Normally I would think this was complete bunk, but I don't see the motive. He is not selling anything and in fact warns against wasting time and money on books about it because it is very simple and straightforward.

I have not read about it much yet, I just heard about it today for the first time. Just wondering if any of you had heard of this or tried it?

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

I will admit that I do not do oil pulling routinely, however, I have a couple of interesting experiences with the practice. It came in quite handy when I had an abcess form in a tooth that had previously had a root canal. I have been trying to move toward any practice that will enable me to become more self-sufficient, but had never heard of oil-pulling until I was researching natural ways of treating abcesses. As painful as it was, I regarded the swollen mass that was my cheek as a blessing and an opportunity to learn. It definitely was!

I swished with coconut oil. After the second round of oil pulling, a hole in my gums opened up and allowed the abcess to drain. I had been treating the tooth with poultices and oils, too, so I didn't know if those methods contributed to the hole opening up.

A few months later, my daughter had developed an abcess. We used coconut oil again. Her abcess reacted a little differently, though. After the first treatment, it looked as if all of the infection was being drawn into a bulge that formed in the gum in front of her tooth. After the second treatment, her gums did the same thing that mine did-a hole appeared and allowed the abcess to drain. We followed up with tea tree oil applied to gums surrounding the affected tooth. She hasn't had a problem since.

I wouldn't be opposed to trying oil pulling routinely and letting you know what happens. My first two experiences with the practice were quite positive.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

Thanks for the feedback!

[believercaptain of 100]

This is very interesting. I am going to try it.

[Mullenitecaptain of 1,000]

This is very interesting. I am going to try it.

Use Olive Oil.

[genesalcaptain of 100]

http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/oil_pulling.html
DO NOT SWALLOW THE OIL.
It now contains parasites and bacteria!

DO NOT GARGLE IN THE THROAT -- THE OIL IS MEANT TO BE SWISHED IN THE MOUTH ONLY.

DO IT SLOWLY.

TYPE OF OIL # YEAS
Avocado Oil 1
Black Cumin Seed Oil 1
Canola Oil 1
Castor Oil 1
Cedar Nut Oil 1
Coconut Oil 20
Cod Liver Oil 1
Flaxseed Oil 1
General Feedback (oil not specified) 102
Grape Seed Oil 1
Hemp Oil 1
Honey 2
Multiple Oils Tried 39
Oil of Oregano 0
Olive Oil 24
Peanut Oil 0
Safflower Oil 5
Sesame Oil 57
Sunflower Oil 37
Walnut Oil 2

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

I have been doing oil pulling for a couple of mornings now. I didn't have any major problems or complaints, so I cannot attest to it being a help for many of the things that there are claims that it can help. What I have noticed is I have a much cleaner palate, food tastes better, appetite appears to be suppressed and I have an overall sense of well being and better energy and mental alertness.

I am using EV olive oil, and will be switching to sesame oil when I get some. I will say I don't care for the taste of the olive oil, and had a small bout of the dry heaves when it came time to spit it out.

I'll keep you all posted of ongoing results.

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

I have been using sesame oil. I haven't been as consistent as I would like to be. Hard to find 20 minutes during the day (even in the morning) when I have to plan on not being able to talk to my children. They're getting really good at charades with an occasional "mmm, mmm, mmm".

Anyway, like OI, I don't have any major complaints or problems to resolve, but I have noticed a couple of things. Increased whiteness of the teeth-not major, but it seems that they are whiter. Maybe I should hurry and take some "before" pictures. I have also noticed that food doesn't stick as easily between my teeth during the day and that my lips don't get as chapped. No adverse effects thus far (knock on wood).

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

Just noticed this today. I wore braces in high school. When they came off, there was some damage done to the surfaces of some of my teeth. The damage on my two upper incisors was the most noticable. There were vertical lines in my teeth that seemed like cracks. If I ran my fingernail across them, it would get caught in those cracks. It was bad because it was easy for plaque to develop there. I had those lines for more than twenty years!! Notice that I said "had"? Today I noticed that the cracks were almost completely gone. I say almost because my left upper incisor still has just a little bit of a groove in it right in the middle of my tooth where the crack was the deepest. Still, I can just barely feel it and it certainly isn't anything in which a fingernail can get stuck!! Very cool!! Rebuilding enamel!!

I had a nephew that had an abcess a few weeks ago. Recommended oil pulling to him. Same thing happened to him as happened my daughter and me. It took a little longer, though. Four or five pulls instead of two or three. I think that's easily attributed to the fact that he is only eight and perhaps wasn't swishing with good technique. (You've got to focus the force of the swishing right around the affected tooth.) Anyway, that's three abcesses drained and some enamel rebuilt. Not bad for a few teaspoons of sesame oil.

[tsccaptain of 100]

Along these same lines, you can use Tea Tree Oil to get rid of toenail fungus. Just dab a cotton swab in the bottle of oil, and rub a little on the bad toenails, and it will start to clear pretty soon.

[Squallycaptain of 1,000]

Just starting this.

[Rensaicaptain of 100]

I just wanted to say thanks to all who contributed to this thread. I'm a believer now. I've been dealing with pain from a tooth or something in my mouth for the last year. I've had to take tylenol, which I do not like taking, just to be able to get to sleep. Three visits to the dentist failed to find any problem or help in anyway. When I read this thread I didn't see how this could possibly help, but I was desperate enough to try.

I've been doing this for the last 3 weeks and after the first week the problem seems to be gone. I haven't had to take tylenol in order to sleep since after the first couple days. Thanks again for sharing this. I'm going to continue oil pulling.

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

Yea!! I'm so glad that this is helping others!

I have three things to update you on, but I have to give you a little background information first.

Like I said in a previous post, the tooth that had the abcess had already had a root canal. I believe that it was infected long before I experienced any pain and swelling. I can't prove that with an x-ray or anything, but I believe that to be true and here's why. About a year before the actual pain and swelling happened, the skin on the right side of my face started to break out. Not your normal acne. It actually started right over what I know now was the affected tooth. Red irritated skin came along with it and it itched at times. I tried everything to get rid of it and nothing worked. It covered my whole right cheek, but it never spread to the left side of my face.

When I first tried the oil-pulling, I didn't do it for a long time. Just long enough for the abcess to drain and for the pain to go away. I never really thought about continuing the regimen. In any case, since resuming the oil-pulling, my skin has been clearing, little by little. Finally, a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel! I really do think that the skin problem was somehow connected to the infection in my tooth-almost like the infection was trying to find a way out and was seeping out into the tissues of my face. Gross, huh?

I've had clogged pores in the infamous "T-zone" of my face since I hit puberty. Those have been clearing up as well. They had started to clear up when I switched to a basically vegan diet, but then it kind of hit a brick wall. They've started disappearing again.

One last item of interest. I have been pregnant more than a few times-fourteen times to be exact! I've had morning sickness every single time except one (that ended up being a miscarriage). Looks like I'm about 8 weeks into the fifteenth pregnancy and NO morning sickness!! Could be another miscarriage or maybe I'm just not pregnant and something else is going on. I haven't taken a test yet and don't plan to either. Time will tell. But I'll tell you something-if I am pregnant and I don't have morning sickness, it could only be attributed to the oil-pulling. Very remarkable!

I've got to run right now. I'll try to post the last item in the morning sickness thread later if I can.

[keeprunningcaptain of 100]

I've attempted this a few times over the years, I just don't know how anyone is able to do it 15-20 minutes at a time?! It is hard.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

I've attempted this a few times over the years, I just don't know how anyone is able to do it 15-20 minutes at a time?! It is hard.

I agree, although for me it is the flavor of the olive oil that gets to me over time. I still haven't switched to sesame oil, but I think it would be better.

[Rensaicaptain of 100]

I've attempted this a few times over the years, I just don't know how anyone is able to do it 15-20 minutes at a time?! It is hard.

I agree, although for me it is the flavor of the olive oil that gets to me over time. I still haven't switched to sesame oil, but I think it would be better.

ugh, I don't know how you can do it with olive oil, it made me want to puke after about 10 seconds. Sesame oil is better, although not terribly great either. I am thinking of trying coconut oil next.

As for the 20 minutes, I guess I didn't do it right. I did it for maybe 5-10 minutes at a time, just until the oil felt like water in my mouth. I don't think I could go 20 minutes, but hey, it still worked for me.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

I've attempted this a few times over the years, I just don't know how anyone is able to do it 15-20 minutes at a time?! It is hard.

I agree, although for me it is the flavor of the olive oil that gets to me over time. I still haven't switched to sesame oil, but I think it would be better.

ugh, I don't know how you can do it with olive oil, it made me want to puke after about 10 seconds. Sesame oil is better, although not terribly great either. I am thinking of trying coconut oil next.

As for the 20 minutes, I guess I didn't do it right. I did it for maybe 5-10 minutes at a time, just until the oil felt like water in my mouth. I don't think I could go 20 minutes, but hey, it still worked for me.

I'm also considering trying something like using the olive oil as a carrier oil and putting a drop of mint extract or something in it and see if that helps. Or maybe try pulling with a mix of oil and mouthwash. Because yeah, I almost got the heaves the first time I did it with olive oil.

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

I hope that everyone has had a great New Year's Day! Great time to start an oil-pulling resolution! Now for an update:

I have some good news and some bad news. First the bad news. I had a miscarriage. I posted earlier that I thought that perhaps the oil-pulling was contributing to my lack of morning sickness. Can't say for sure if that was the case or not now. Maybe I'll get another chance to test that theory out. We'll see.

And now the good news. The two lower left molars that are all the way in the back of my mouth (excluding the wisdom tooth) have some discoloration. The best way I can describe it is "ring-around-the-tooth"-kind of like ring-around-the-collar". The discoloration is black and used to go almost completely around my teeth. It isn't a cavity. It's been there for several dental check-ups. I've been watching it slowly disappear since I started oil-pulling. The lateral and medial sides of my teeth have been losing the discoloration first. The sides adjacent to other teeth still have some discoloration on them, but here's hoping that they eventually fade as well. I hope I'm not turning anyone off to this thread by being so detailed in my information. When I first started doing this, I really didn't think that I would end up having that much to report. By next year, I might have my whole medical history online! Somebody say something if you feel like I'm sharing too much information.

I should probably mention that I only use baking soda when I brush. I started that months before I started the oil-pulling, but I didn't notice any changes in the discoloration by just brushing with baking soda alone. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if the oil-pulling coupled with a mild abrasive like baking soda is doing the trick.
I feel like that's why the discoloration between my teeth is not fading as fast. Harder for the abrasive to remove it.

I'm still using sesame oil. I've used coconut oil a few times when I was out of the sesame oil. Kudos to you, OI, for staying with the EV olive oil. I could easily start heaving just thinking about it. Yuck!!

I've been able to make this a part of my morning routine by keeping the oil in my bedroom. First thing I do after prayers and scriptures is start swishing. Then I get up and get ready for the day. By the time I get showered and dressed, it's been about 20 minutes and time to spit, rinse, and brush. I think that you are supposed to use a tablespoon of oil, but I can't use that much. I tried a couple of times, but by the end of 20 minutes, my mouth was ready to explode with every swish because of the extra volume caused by added saliva. 1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons is perfect for me.

Don't get to post a whole lot so let me take this opportunity to say thanks to all of you. I've been following the forum for a little over a year now and have learned so much from all of you!! I wish I had time to share more. Hopefully, what little I do say about the oil-pulling helps someone. A small contribution compared to all that I have gained from being part of this virtual group. May 2011 bring us all closer to Christ and His Zion!!

[Squallycaptain of 1,000]

Thanks for all the input here on this thread. My wife and both are doing oil pulling, and have been for about the past week and a half. We started with sunflower for the first week, and now we are using unrefined sesame oil which is wonderful. We both go about 15 minutes or a bit less. Basically when it turns watery I spit. Both my wife and I have noticed our teeth are getting a little bit whiter and smoother. Cleaner breath all day. Less plaque (no plaque sticks the teeth anymore). Very happy with this, thanks for this thread!

[believercaptain of 100]

An Eye Single,

I am sorry about your miscarraige. I hope you are feeling better, although I know that the emotional healing takes longer. I hope everything else goes well for you.


Believer

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

An Eye Single,

I am sorry about your miscarraige. I hope you are feeling better, although I know that the emotional healing takes longer. I hope everything else goes well for you.


Believer

An Eye Single - I am sorry too about your miscarriage. I hope you receive comfort and also heal physically soon

Well I tried this using sesame seed oil - I almost threw up. I lasted about 30 seconds. I eat almost all healthy, organic, raw, natural foods, and I brush my teeth with a homemade soap based toothpaste with neem bark and essential oils. So I was surprised that it was so nasty!!! But I'll try again....soon....maybe.... Is there a better oil to use? EVOO?

Thank you. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I am doing very well physically and emotionally. I put the whole procreative part of my life into the Lord's hands a long time ago. Not that I'm not disappointed in losing the baby. It's just that, to me, the miscarriage just means it's not time for another one, for whatever reason. He sees both sides of the veil better than I do. Again, thank you for the condolences.

Jules, my daughter pulls with coconut oil. The taste agrees with her. It might solve your texture problem, too, since it turns to a solid just below room temperature and, as a liquid, it's thinner than other oils. You can put it in your mouth as a solid or as a liquid and, either way, it might not be as thick as other oils. Just a thought.

[ndjilicaptain of 100]

I tried it with sesame oil twice...went in the heaves both times...am so going to try coconut oil cause these savory oils are nasty first thing in the morning.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

Switched to sesame oil from EV olive oil this morning. What a difference! Far mor pleasant, and I actually did feel it did a better job.

[Hivetyrantcaptain of 10]

I use a substance called "Thieves" to accomplish this. It contains a mixture of essential oils made by a reputable company called Young Living. I use their mouthwash version(still pure oils). Doesn't taste the greatest, but not bad either, since they gave you the courtesy of adding peppermint oil into the mix. I can tell you all from experience that it helps to clear up infections in the gums, and dissolves a great deal of plaque. First time I used it, my mouth had never felt cleaner.

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

UPDATE:

I have not been as consistent in my oil-pulling regimen as I would have like to have been these past few weeks. Took a trip out of town and that didn't help matters. In any case, I can say that an inconsistent regimen of oil-pulling does not cure morning sickness.

It has helped alleviate it, however. The days that I have done my oil-pulling have been remarkably easier. I plan on getting the consistency back on track and I will return and report.

[WhiteLightningHi, I'm new.]

UPDATE:

I have not been as consistent in my oil-pulling regimen as I would have like to have been these past few weeks. Took a trip out of town and that didn't help matters. In any case, I can say that an inconsistent regimen of oil-pulling does not cure morning sickness.

It has helped alleviate it, however. The days that I have done my oil-pulling have been remarkably easier. I plan on getting the consistency back on track and I will return and report.

What is amazing to me is that you have 13 children! God bless you...

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

I will be going to my first denstist appt. since I started oil pulling. I have been very inconsistent, but have done it most days for the last couple of weeks. I'm quite interested to see if they notice any change. I personally feel that even doing it occasionally that my oral health is very improved.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

OK, here is the report from the dentist:

No cavities, as usual
gums were much improved over last visit
cleaning was much easier than usual (less tartar buildup than usual for me)

That was with really no changes in oral care other than the occassional oil pull. I have been pretty consistent the last couple weeks, but before that only did it a few times per month.

[An Eye Singlecaptain of 50]

OK, here is the report from the dentist:

No cavities, as usual
gums were much improved over last visit
cleaning was much easier than usual (less tartar buildup than usual for me)

That was with really no changes in oral care other than the occassional oil pull. I have been pretty consistent the last couple weeks, but before that only did it a few times per month.

Oh, yeah! That was another thing that happened. I don't remember how long I had been oil-pulling before this happened. I had some tartar build-up on the back of my lower right incisor. After oil-pulling for a while, it came off one day when I was working a toothpick between those two lower front teeth. Came off very easily and in one piece. No dentist with a metal hook necessary.

[Original_Intentcaptain of 1,000]

Yep, the dental technician said "last time we had to use the sonic tool to break up the tartar because I was having some problems just scraping, but we are breezing thru today!"

Big thumbs up for oil pulling!