Oil Pulling Therapy: Detoxifying and Healing the Body Through Oral Cleansing

After oil pulling with coconut oil first thing in the morning for 6 weeks(but I also brush and floss) my dental hygienist was flabbergasted at how my mouth and teeth had improved. No plaque and my teeth color did not deteriorate since my last visit. My teeth coloring was one major problem I have always had-extra work to whiten but made the dentist richer. Since beginning oil pulling, I only have to go every 6 months instead of 4 months. In the future I will probably go yearly instead now that my mouth is great. Since I will not have dental insurance for long, this little book has become a marvelous money saver too. I have always enjoyed history and Dr. Fife's clear writing of the connection between oral hygiene and the onset of many illnesses is illuminating, and just plain fun! As an extra aside, I bit my tongue (ouch!!) which needed 2 stitches (ouch ouch!!). I Oil Pulled several times a day which soothed the injury. I do not know if my injured tongue healed more quickly with oil pulling but it is good as new. I also oil pull with coconut oil for a few minutes only after having a good cigar. No matter how 'good' my cigars are, my mouth has a little tingle afterwards. The oil pull soothes my mouth. UPDATE: 4/19/2011. I just came back from my dental exam. It turns out my gums have 'grown' back around 2 of my teeth. Once a year, my gums get measured for any gum receding(recession?). Most of my mouth has a 2 or 3 rating which is good. Apparently there were 2 spots though that had a 4 rating from last year. These spots all improved to a 3!!. I asked how that is possible and was informed that keeping the mouth extra clean along with flossing created the environment for my gums to thrive. To me, these numbers are evidence that oil pulling does the trick. By the by, I continue to not have any plaque. Again, I attribute oil pulling as the major factor. I used to brush and floss x2/day but still had moderate plaque. Believe it!!! Jan 6, 012: It has been 8 1/2 months since my last general exam. My hygienist asked how I liked my electric toothbrush. I told her I only use a manual. She looked at me surprised. She said my teeth and gums look like I use the electric because they are so clean. She also noticed that teeth were not stained since I did not smoke many cigars this year which was true due to horrible hot summer. She cleaned and polished them and after the dentist looked I went on my way. Oil pulling continues to improve my mouth!!! Feb 4, 2014: Hello there!... I''m back with an update. I have returned to my dentist after one full year due to sudden tooth pain. I continue to oil pull every morning for 20 minutes and brush and floss x2/day. A full exam was done but exam was quick. No plaque and gums are good. Dentist has this new spray that cleans teeth instead of usual cleaning method. Hygienist says I brush very good including in the back. This I attribute to my oil pulling in the back of the mouth. very easy. there has been some pain in the back . X-rays taken. No infection of nerve damage so dentist recd I return in 6 months as a preventative...I agreed. best to spend a few bucks to be safe but will concentrate oil pulling in the painful region in case germs are hiding. Take care everyone. Sept 3, 2014. Time flies!. No plaque except way in the back of my mouth where it is hard to brush but not as bad as before. no plaque elsewhere. painful tooth continues but using special toothpaste. Just have to live w it. My dentist has the same problem. Gums still growing in some new areas. Take care. Jan 4, 2016. Happy New Year. Was talking with a friend and she just happened to thank me for introducing her to Oil Pulling w coconut oil from about 2 years ago. She said her plaque has been reduced, her teeth are whiter and her teeth "deep pockets" have disappeared. Her dentist is amazed. Not too shabby, huh folks?

What is oil pulling? Simply put, oil pulling is putting a spoonful of oil in your mouth and swishing the oil around, anywhere from a few minutes to twenty minutes. After finishing, you then proceed to spit out the oil making sure not to swallow it. That last part is integral, because all the toxins that leave your mouth will become part of the swished components that have seeped from your mouth after oil pulling, and you sure as heck don’t want that entering your system. Oil pulling itself goes back a few thousand years. In fact, it has its origins in Ayurvedic medicine in India, if not before. Ancient Ayurvedic medical texts outlined this practice, and the practitioners found out that rinsing the mouth with vegetable oil ‘not only cleanses the mouth but restores health to the body. In fact, this process is said to cure a few dozen system diseases.[1] Because of those facts, Oil Pulling Therapy – Detoxifying & Healing The Body Through Oral Cleansing by Dr. Bruce Fife is a very important, and underrated book. The reason Oil Pulling Therapy is important is because it gets at the heart of the matter regarding disease: the mouth. Being a mirror to our bodies, if you have dismal dental health then you are undoubtedly going to experience a kaleidoscope of health problems. Some of the conditions that are helped by oil pulling are acne, allergies, arthritis, asthma, back pain and neck pain, bad breath, bronchitis, chronic fatigue, colitis, crohn’s disease, constipation, dental cavities, dermatitis, diabetes, eczema, hypertension, hemorrhoids, insomnia, migraine headaches, mucous congestions, peptic ulcers, PMS, periodontal disease, bleeding gums, sinusitis, and tooth abscess.[2] To continue along the same lines, an incisive passage in the book follows: “In addition to the above-mentioned conditions, medical studies have indicated that the following can also be directly related to oral health and may respond to oil pulling therapy: Acidosis, Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome [ARDS], Athrosclerosis, Blood Disorders, Brain Abscess, Cancer, Emphysema, Gallbladder Disease, Gout, Heart Disease, Hyperglycemia, Infertility, Kidney Disease, Liver Disease, Meningitis, Nerve Disorders, Osteoporosis, Paget’s Disease, Pneumonia, Preeclampsia, Preterm/Low Birth Weight Babies, Psychotic Episodes, Stroke, Toxic Shock Syndrome, and many types of infectious disease.”[3] Many people will instantly think, “But how is it possible that oil pulling can help so much?” Excellent question. As alluded to before, the mouth is the gateway to the body, and if the mouth exhibits poor dental health, so will the body. Since the mouth is a breeding ground for all types of germs, it’s easy to see how these germs, if allowed to remain in the mouth, “can migrate to other parts of the body, cause infections, and alter body chemistry, leading the way to any number of infectious and degenerative conditions.”[4] For me, personally, there have been quite a few benefits of oil pulling. As someone whose oil pulled for nigh 3 years, it’s helped my health quite a bit. Not only do my teeth feel clean, but they are also whiter. Additionally, I don’t experience the pain in my gums that used to happen in the past. Although I can’t prove it, I do believe myself that oil pulling has also helped me tackle issues with Candida that have taken place in the past. Furthermore, my regularly scheduled headaches went away, my gums don’t ache when biting foods and are much firmer and healthier, and also don’t experience allergies as much. The great part about oil pulling is that it’s not only one of the most simplest methods to aid health, but also has nigh no side effects when compared to prescription drugs, which have many. In fact, properly taken, FDA approved prescription drugs cause over 100,000 deaths yearly. That’s certainly something you’ll never hear of coconut oil! That’s a whole ‘nother can of worms however. In addition, oil pulling, unlike brushing your teeth, gets into many crevices that the brush won’t get into. This is because “brushing only reaches 60 percent of the surfaces of your teeth, leaving plague in hard-to-reach areas such as in-between teeth.”[5] Ironically, although benefits of oil pulling go back a few thousand years, it is rarely known to most people. That’s an intriguing conundrum, except when one realizes that modern medicine goes by the adage that for every ill there is a pill, then you start to see why oil pulling goes against the grain as the system pushes for pills, rather than lifestyle changes and as well as dietary changes. These changes, ironically, are on par with what our ancestors did, which is why they were vastly healthier than we are as a ‘modern’ society nowadays. All things considered, oil pulling is one of the cheapest, cost-effective, safe, and efficient ways to take control of one’s health. Individuals of all ages can do this. The question isn’t why SHOULD you do it, the question is, why NOT? But don’t believe me, do your own research, and you will see the effects. _________________________________________________ Sources: [1] Dr. Bruce Fife, Oil Pulling Therapy – Detoxifying & Healing The Body Through Oral Cleansing, p. 86. [2] Ibid., p. 12. [3] Ibid., pp. 11-12. [4] Ibid., pp. 89-90. [5] Ibid., p. 18.

While the book is very thorough, a better title would be "Oil Pulling Therapy: A Very Detailed History and Why We Should Do It." It is a bit of a dry read. It also seems to put oil pulling on a pedestal as though it can cure every ailment known to man. I am certain it will help with conditions of the mouth and many other ailments connected to the health of your mouth and head, I do not think it's prudent to make people think it's the answer to all that ails them. For when they don't get the incredible results they've read about, they will likely not keep up with it or worse, dissuade others from trying it.

The basic concept is to flush bacteria and viruses out of your mouth with oil. If one can get a twenty percent reduction of bacteria in 40 days, then what about the next 40 days?, etc. Its so easy to do. Dr Weston A. Price embedded infected root canal teeth under the skin of rabbits so that the bacteria could enter the blood stream to simulate an infected root canal (page 36). The results are shocking. Bacteria build up and cause Gingivitis and the swollen gums may bleed during brushing and flossing so that the bacteria can enter your blood stream. Remember the rabbit. Despite brushing, flossing, and dental checkups, many people have bleeding gums. Oil Pulling covers all the surfaces in the mouth and reaches all the bacteria. No specific oil is recommended. Weston A. Price Foundation has a good article on Cod Liver Oil, Vitamin D, and Tooth Enamel formation by May Mellanby. The antifungal/antimicrobial activity of Oil Pulling with Sunflower/Sesame oil and with Coconut Oil is discussed in "Effect of Oil-Pulling on Oral Microorganisms in Biofilm Models." The oil is not swallowed (page 108). On page 68, the author talks about mercury, nickle, and fluoride and compares their toxicity with other toxic substances such as arsenic, cyanide, and lead. The results are shocking. If your toothpaste says "Keep out of Reach of Children" and contact the poison center if swallowed and you are wondering why someone would put a poison in your toothpaste to make a profit, then this is a good book for you. If you care about your self and family, then this book will provide an education about dentistry that you will surely not forget.

Excellent book. I have been "oil pulling" now for 2 weeks and really can tell the difference...the back of my front teeth seemed rough before and nothing I tried made it smooth, but the oil pulling has. I also sometimes put Rosemary Essential oil, I put one drop in to the coconut oil I have read that Rosemary essential oil is a disinfectant and is often used as a mouth wash. It also helps in removing bad breath. By removing oral bacteria, rosemary essential oil can prevent gingivitis, cavities, plaque build up, and other damaging dental conditions. So like I said, I put a small drop in. I don't like to recommend anything to anyone as we all are different, but that works for me. Another thing I like about the book is it also talks about minerals and vitamins we need and are deficient in, also about magnesium which I now have a book on. If you are interested in the lack of magnesium we have, check out magnesium oil on Amazon. The book also talks about the mercury we have in our "metal" fillings which definitely is a bad thing. It is too late for me, I have had them in for years now so I wonder about some of the problems I have now. Another topic discussed is Fluoride which is put into 2/3 of the US public drinking water. This book opens your eyes to a lot of things we normally don't think of and we can research also for ourselves.

This therapy is worth a try. You have got to do it for at least a few weeks, oil pulling at least one half hour or more (total) every day. I have a significantly reduced abscess, improved Blood Pressure and have to give this process the credit. The dentist repaired a chipped tooth, but it never felt good and glands below became tender. Pain and 3 months later, Dentist says root canal, I prefer extraction. I start pulling to save the tooth. 1 week later, swelling down, pain subsided. I pull on rising before eating or drinking coffee. 15 minutes is a gag, so I do two 5-7 minute pulls and a number of 3-5 minute pulls during the day, BEFORE meals and always before bed. Total is about 40 minutes of pulling per day. If you are like me, just give up on 15-20 minute pulls and just do more frequent, shorter pulls. Complications? Coughing up ugly phlegm and a cough associated with the phlegm. No cold during this time, no other symptoms. Max pull was 2-3 minutes at first, then got past gag reflex to get to the 5 minute mark after 1 week into pulling therapy. After 5 weeks, tooth feels much better today (I can actually chew there, but I don't) the swelling is down to a small bump and facial disfigurement is gone - I can lose the beard. Hypertension? I have modestly elevated BP. 1 year ago, after a course in antibiotics, my Systolic BP dropped some 30 points. After two weeks of pulling, average BP was down to 115-125/70-80 range vs a prior 140-150/70-80 range. No changes in diet. The same tooth had cracked years BEFORE the BP rose. If Fife is right and your mouth is a source of germs/parasites/virus colonies, the cracked tooth provided a bloodstream entry, possibly resulting in a kidney infection. Kidneys control BP. Fife says pulling cuts oral population of germs, reducing the load on the immune system. If so, this might explain the improvement in my BP, as the kidneys would have been laboring under an infection, and also might explain why the antibiotics caused the drop in BP. Pursuing this logic, I have recently added a garlic (bulb) supplement, as it has modest anti-microbial benefits. I also take CoQ-10, Astaxanthin, magnesium (~600mg) and an ALA/ALCAR supplement, but have been taking these for a couple years. All in all, I am surprised that oil pulling has been beneficial and believe that anyone suffering from any disease should give this a try. Small $ and time investment and results within a couple weeks. I strongly endorse this book and the oil pulling procedure.

I am convinced the bacteria in our mouth is a major cause of diabetes (and other diseases) if allowed to enter the bloodstream. I became diabetic a few months after having 4 cavities filled and I could never figure out why. I'm not overweight, it does not run in my family, and always ate fairly healthy. After much research I have undoubtedly concluded it was due to the dental work I had. Studying oral microbiology I learned oral bacteria have evolved mechanisms to sense their environment and evade or modify the host. Bacteria has one goal, to survive. Bacteria needs sugar to survive, it's what feeds it (btw it's not sugar that causes tooth decay, it's the acidic excrement from bacteria. Sugar simply feeds the bacteria which causes the bacteria to multiply rapidly and eventually tooth decay). Once this bacteria enters the blood stream it then has an avenue to wreak havoc on the rest of your body. Since it's goal is to survive, and with it's ability to modify the host (your body) it makes complete sense that it would create an environment most favorable for it to survive by attacking the pancreas in order to raise sugar levels in the host. But don't take my word for it, a study done in 2000 verifies the link between oral bacteria and systematic disease such as diabetes. [...] Oil pulling is probably the best, easiest, and cheapest way to keep oral bacteria at bay. It is a simple process and you don't need this book to do it, but it definitely provides insight as to why and how it is so effective, and the more you understand it the longer you will keep at it.

This is a good starter book for someone who isn't informed about disease or oral hygiene. And this is the first book for me to read concerning Oil Pulling. I also do not have any serious physical ailments that cause me discomfort and have been oil pulling for about 2 weeks with no noticeable affects other than a nice clean mouth. The aurthur appears to have done quite a bit of research to garner nearly 200 pages. However, I found Bruce Fife to be very repetitive and pushy in regards to his other published books, which makes me question the validity of some of his discussions. Then on pg 112 he states that "...any oil will work...including olive..., peanut..., cocunut...and even whole milk." This sentence contributed to a 3 vs 4 star. The whole milk reference really made my head tilt and he did not even bother to explain that entry; and here he had a valid topic to actually contribute a refreshing opinion or idea. I also think the picture of the woman on the front page is very misleading - which also encouraged a 2-3...In addition, his "program" consists of good oral hygiene, as well as eating properly and life style changes that may be needed to affect a cure for one's condition - giving a 2-3. He states this throughout the book as well as adding his caveat of "this is not a cure all" procedure - another 2-3.

This book changed our family's oral health. I bought it with reluctance but I am so glad I bought it. Now my family of three is doing the coconut mouthwash on a daily basis. My son, 12-year-old, had very dirty looking teeth but now his teeth look very clean and hopefully this will prevent him from getting any cavities. Another thing is none of us now has bad breath and we sleep very deeply at night. Vivalabs coconut oil we use has very mild taste so it's a lot easier to do mouth wash than any other oil. Two thumbs up for this oli pulling therapy book. It's well worth the read.

Interesante

After having read on the Internet that you don't need to know much about oil pulling to be able to do it as the method is quite simple, I decided to buy this book anyway as I had problems with one of the fillings in my teeth after I started oil pulling and I don't regret it at all. As I had already read Dr. Bruce Fife's book Coconut Cures I contacted him with the question whether my problem might be related to oil pulling or not. I was using sunflower oil at the time. He wrote back telling me that I should consider reading his book about Oil Pulling as my tooth must have had a problem before I started oil pulling or else the filling wouldn't have fallen. I found this book to have a lot of useful information wich helped me understand more about the health of my teeth and my mouth. I also loved the last chapter about Myths and Misconceptions about Oil Pulling which helps you to understand what is true and not about what you read online. The chapter about vitamines and minerals was very important to understand the vitamines and minerals which are important for your health, the dosage usually recommended and why it is not always right. I had no idea that you should be more aware of taking enough magnesium than worrying about whether you take enough calcium as calcium is everywhere and the ideal ratio of both because they each can deplete the other if not taken properly. The part about root canals worries me because the problem I had was exactly in a tooth which had had a root canal. The advice to have the tooth pulled doesn't really appeal to me but I will see how it goes. The problem is that often you do have an infection going on without noticing and it doesn't hurt like in a normal tooth and that can affect all your health. Tomorrow I am going to buy what I need to make the Medicated Coconut Oil as I have just had a problem with my gums. So to all those who think that they can read it all online and that after all you don't need more information than which oil to use and how many minutes to keep it in your mouth I would say..... read a good book, any book, I would even recommend this book!

Great book.. everybody must have it.. Really amazing..

It covers interesting the topic of mouth hygiene and gum health.