Ah the internet. I have a serious hate, love, hate relationship with the internet. Did I mention I married a techie? Yeah so… the internet and all it’s memes. Ugg. I’m tired just thinking about it. If I see one more post about ’10 things you never thought you would ever see ever if you didn’t click on this video right now of a cat batting at an egg,’ my head might explode.

Maybe it’s just me? I come from a time when computers weren’t even really a thing. Okay, no I wasn’t born in the 30’s, but when I was a kid we had encyclopedias made from paper, in order to use a dictionary you had to be able to spell, and our phones were attached to the wall – when you left home you had no means of communication unless you used a pay phone (aka ‘a glass cage of emotion’ for the Anchorman generation). We made friends face to face and played rough in nature without supervision. It was the best of times, it was… quite frankly the best of times.

But once in a blue moon something comes across one of my 20 open tabs, ahem, that’s actually helpful or fascinating or both. Considering how much we waste our brains staring at our computer screens, those little morsels of knowledge can be the ‘online age’s’ one redemption.

Would I have known about oil pulling if I didn’t have a computer? Well, maybe. I could have heard about it at a yoga studio, or read it in a magazine, or heard from a friend. But a funny thing happened instead. I read about it online a few months ago and then recently decided I wanted to try it out. Suddenly it was all over the internet. Really. Everywhere. It was as if the internet was monitoring my thoughts. Does that ever happen to you? Scary, I know.

It’s quite the trend right now, this ancient Aryuvedic dental care, Gwyneth Paltrow even does it in the midst of her ‘conscious uncoupling.’ So I figured I could probably do it too since I’m not uncoupling at the moment which should give me a bit of extra free time, no? Well, whether you are coupling, uncoupling, poly, single, whatevs, you will totally benefit from this seemingly gross ritual. I know I’m winning you over already, right? I’m serious though, call the karma police because I’m about to let you in on a little secret (ok, it’s not a secret at all, but I’m going to make you want to do it & you’ll thank me later) and tell them to give me an awesome job teaching yoga to activists. Now that we’ve sorted what I want from you, I bring you: Oil Pulling 101.

“Oil pulling, also known as “kavala” or “gundusha,” is an ancient Ayurvedic dental technique that involves swishing a tablespoon of oil in your mouth on an empty stomach for 20 minutes. This action supposedly draws out toxins in your body, primarily to improve oral health but also to improve your overall health.”

Potential benefits include: 

• Whiter teeth
• Cavity and gingivitis prevention
• Better breath
• Stronger teeth and gums
• Less jaw pain, alleviation of TMJ
• Improved sleep
• Alleviation of headaches
• Alleviation of hangovers
• Alleviation of acne and skin issues like eczema

When I first tried oil pulling, I seriously thought I would throw up. How can you not swallow for 20 minutes? Even worse, not talk?? How can you have a glob of OIL in your MOUTH for that long? And to tell you the truth, I couldn’t. I felt defeated. I barely did 5 minutes! But I learned a few things during those 5 painful minutes. The first is that it might be best to work up to the full tablespoon amount, so I continued the next few days with a teaspoon. I also cut myself some slack with the time. Now, apparently for this to really do it’s magic, you need to do the full 20 minutes, but I think your first week can be an introductory period and you can increase your time daily. I found it extremely beneficial to do something while oil pulling: cooking breakfast, showering, answering emails etc. It helps keep your mind off the oil. Also, you may need to rest for a moment and let the oil just sit there. That’s okay too. Just don’t swallow it. If it’s doing what it says, it is leaching the toxins out of your body – you really don’t want to swallow them again.

Here’s the thing though, you can’t talk. So if you have a toddler, or anyone really, that you need to communicate with right when you wake up, you’ll need assistance, sign language, or a very patient toddler (riiiight).

When I’m done, I drink my warm lemon water (Ha! I know I told you that was the first thing I do in the morning, but it’s actually the second thing). Christ. It literally takes me 25 whole minutes to get to my freaking cup of joe. But, you know what? It’s really worth it. I’ve found the discipline alone something I enjoy and need. I have noticed my teeth are whiter – just within the month. They always feel super clean, all day long. My mouth in general feels amazing. I know I’m not providing some scientific theorem here (okay, kind of), but if you’ve trusted me this far (and I know some of you have as you’ve started your lemon water rituals – yay!), then give it a shot. Remember, be patient, have discipline, and see what happens over some time. I’m pretty certain you will be surprised.

Directions:

1. Put 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil or cold pressed organic sesame oil into your mouth. I scoop it out as a solid and let it melt in my mouth before swishing.
2. Swish for 20 minutes. Apparently the timing is key, as this is long enough to break through plaque and bacteria but not long enough that the body starts re-absorbing the toxins and bacteria. The oil will get thicker and milky as it mixed with saliva during this time and it should be creamy-white when spit out.
3. Spit oil into the trash can.  Don’t spit into the sink! Do not swallow the oil as it is hopefully full of bacteria, toxins and pus that are now not in the mouth!
4. Rinse/gargle well with warm water. Some folks suggest gargling with salt water, but that makes me gag. Your choice.

Let me know how it goes! Good luck and enjoy!