Let me just say that oil pulling can be a messy job (especially if you’re clumsy me), and is not something I necessarily look forward to every day, but it is worth every moment because of the health benefits!
What is oil pulling and how does it work?
Oil pulling is simply swishing your mouth with oil to pull all mucous, bacteria and toxins from your body through your saliva. It is said that acute diseases can be cured within 2-4 days by practicing oil pulling 3 times a day on an empty stomach. [1]
Who should oil pull?
Anyone with a disease, ailment or who wants to help rid their body of toxins that we all have – so basically everyone! 🙂 I would recommend everyone practice oil pulling on occasion for 4 weeks at a time. You just may discover amazing healing in your body! Children over 5 can oil pull also.
Health Benefits of Oil Pulling
As I’ve previously said, oil pulling helps to detox the body by pulling out toxins, viruses, and bacteria (and some even say parasites as well.) Here are some specific ways it can assist the body to better health. [2] [3]
- Heal cavities (I am currently oil pulling to heal some dental issues I have. I can already see a difference!)
- Whitens teeth
- Fights bad breath
- Heals gum disease and bleeding
- Improves digestion
- Clears acne
- Reduces inflammation
- Boosts the immune system
The Reason I Use Coconut Oil
While olive, sesame, and sunflower oils do a great job when oil pulling, I typically use coconut oil. The reason why is because coconut oil has so many health benefits. It balances hormones, kills candida, fights Alzheimers, and inhibits the growth of the Streptococcus bacteria, which is a big contributor to tooth decay. [4]
How To Use Oil Pulling for Self-Healing and Detoxification
- First thing in the morning, before eating or drinking, place 2 tsp to 1 tbsp of oil in your mouth. This can be olive, sesame, sunflower, or coconut oil.
- Slowly swish, suck, chomp and pull the oil through the teeth. Make sure you swish between the back molars too. I have to admit that I felt kind of gaggy to swish oil in my mouth for several minutes the first few times I oil pulled, but I quickly got used to it and keep myself busy while I do it so that it goes by quicker. As I’ve said, the health benefits make it very worth it!
- Pull the oil through your teeth for 15-20 minutes. I always do it for 20 minutes. You can start out with 5-10 minutes a day until you get used to it. I almost always oil pull while I’m showering in the mornings. By the time I’m out of the shower, dressed, putting on makeup, etc. my 20 minutes is up and the time goes by very quickly.
- Spit the oil out and rinse your mouth out well. Never swallow the oil because you will be swallowing all the bacteria, parasites, and viruses that you’ve just pulled out of your body. If you use coconut oil, do not spit the oil down the sink because it will solidify and clog the drains. Instead, spit in the trash or outside.
- Drink a glass of water right after.
Just a word of advice. Don’t ever oil pull when you are extremely tired and it’s way past your bedtime, and you realize you forgot to oil pull that morning. You may just sit on the couch swishing it in your mouth because such persistency and consistency are the keys to changing your health, so you must do it before bed, right? The problem with that is that (remember you are very tired because you lead a very busy life) you might wake up a few hours later realizing you fell asleep while doing the oil pulling and swallowed the oil. You can then only hope that you didn’t swish it around for too long before dozing off and hopefully the oil did not contain too many toxins. Don’t ask me how I know.
Note:
- Children ages 5 and up can oil pull using 1 tsp. of oil.
- People with dentures need to remove them before using this method.
- To do this 3 times a day to heal an acute disease, you would need to do this before breakfast, lunch and dinner. Be sure to wait at least 4 hours after meals before you oil pull, and at least 1 hour after drinking anything. Once you are finished oil pulling, you can eat and drink right away – you will then need to be sure not to eat or snack between breakfast and lunch if you are oil pulling 3 times a day to heal something serious.
- As with any detoxing, you may or may not experience a healing crisis. You may feel worse, have headaches, or you may not. If you do have a healing crisis, do not stop oil pulling! This is a sign that your body is healing and the ailment is being remedied. Sometimes we feel worse before we feel better.
References
- Oil Pulling With Coconut Oil Is A Powerful Way to Cleanse. (n.d.). Retrieved March 17, 2016, from http://www.be-healthy-with-coconuts.com/oil-pulling-with-coconut-oil.html
- Coconut Oil Pulling Benefits and My How-to Guide. (2014). Retrieved March 17, 2016, from http://draxe.com/oil-pulling-coconut-oil/
- The Health Benefits of Oil Pulling. (2014). Retrieved March 17, 2016, from http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/benefits-of-oil-pulling/
- What Type of Oil Works Best for Oil Pulling? (n.d.). Retrieved March 17, 2016, from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/05/05/oil-pulling-coconut-oil.aspx
This is linked to:
The Prairie Homestead Deep Roots At Home
This post has been updated from its original publishing date of October 19, 2011.