Coconut oil has been huge in the beauty world lately, and I can attest to at least one of its benefits first hand. While there are a number of ways that the wonderfully scented oil can be implemented into your beauty routine, I’ve personally tried coconut oil as a natural alternative to whiten teeth, and if you ask me it’s way better than harsh chemicals and other store bought alternatives!
Ok, so now you’re just dying to find out what exactly oil pulling is, right? Well, it’s basically just gargling with coconut oil for 10-20 minutes a day. Sounds easy enough, right?
I recommend oil pulling for at least two weeks for optimum results. I started to notice a difference in my mouth and teeth color about a week in. To make this process even easier than it already is, let me walk you through the steps.
Step 1: Purchase Your Coconut Oil
Refined or unrefined will work, but some recommend unrefined because it hasn’t been bleached been processed or treated.
Step 2: Start The Process
In the morning, before you brush your teeth or eat anything, rinse your mouth with water. Then, gather a spoonful of coconut oil. And here comes the trickiest part—you can either put the coconut oil in your mouth straight from the jar and let it melt in your mouth, or microwave your spoonful in a glass before putting it in your mouth. I tried it straight from the jar, and didn’t like the texture and the way the blob felt in my mouth (sorry if that’s TMI), so I choose to melt the oil first, and that works much better!
Step 3: Swish The Oil Around In Your Mouth
Now that you’ve got your spoonful of oil, start swishing the oil around your mouth. Then, keep it in there for the next 10-20 minutes. This part is harder than in sounds, so if you need to work your way up to holding it for 10 minutes and longer, that’s completely fine.
Step 4: Spit And Rinse
After the time has passed, it’s time to spit the oil out, but you can’t spit it directly into the sink because it isn’t good for coconut oil to go down the drain. I would suggest having a few paper towels handy so that you can spit the coconut oil out into them. It’s important to try not to swallow the coconut oil because it’s holding the toxins that were in your teeth, and you don’t want that entering into your body again. Once you’ve discarded of the oil, give your mouth a good rinse and brush your teeth.
Repeat this process for two weeks, and you’ll be able to see and feel a difference in your mouth, I promise! I hope you enjoy this all-natural, hassle free approach to whitening your teeth, I know I did!
Photo by mealmakeovermoms 