I Tried Oil Pulling For 3 Months, Here’s What Happened

A few months ago I shared 6 ways I use my beloved coconut oil and oil pulling was one of them.

Oil pulling is a health remedy that uses plant based oils to detoxify the body and clean the teeth and mouth.  It’s called “pulling” because the oil is supposed to “pull” toxins out of your system.

I have started oil pulling on several occasions in the past, but never kept it up because I never noticed any benefits. I’d do it for  a couple weeks before I got discouraged and stopped entirely.

This time was different.

I started oil pulling in early March and kept it up (almost) daily oil for three months. My goal was to give it a chance to actually work on any of my health concerns (allergy relief, detoxification, increased energy, tooth whitening were my goals).

Let’s review what I did:

1. Optional: Brush teeth as usual
2. Put a teaspoon of oil into my mouth (don’t worry, if it’s solid it will melt)
3. Swish the oil around for 20 minutes (I typically do this while I’m getting ready in the morning and in the shower)
4. Spit the oil into the kitchen trash or a small plastic baggy and discard.  Don’t spit in sink or tub because oil can clog pipes overtime.
5. Optional: Brush your teeth again (Note: you have to pick one of the teeth brushing sessions, both of them aren’t optional LOL. )

My final results are not much to blog about. I noticed no relief with allergies (although I know others who rave about oil pulling for this issue, I prefer my neti pot), I noticed no general feeling of well-being or energy increase, and I noticed no whitening of my teeth (yes I took a before and after picture but I don’t want to post them so you’ll have to take my word, no whitening).

Ironically the two things I did notice after oil pulling for three months were my mouth felt super clean after each oil pulling session and ironically, kind of a comforting feeling of the repetitive swishing since I’ve been doing it for months now.

So as I said in my last post, I did not notice any benefits from oil pulling so I was not motivated to continue, and I still am not, although I must confess that I may do it every once in a while because it’s strangely relaxing. Who knew?

Do you oil pull and if so have you noticed any benefits?