I’ve been following Dr Michael Greger for a while now. He does a great job investigating natural or food-based therapies and supplements for wellness and health. Recently, he posted an update on oil pulling.
There is an evidence-based benefit to daily oil pulling to alleviate sensitive teeth. It did about as well when compared with manufactured desensitizing products. And there is an ancillary benefit to keeping the skin of the mouth more comfortable when patients are suffering from a dry mouth condition.
Apart from that, there isn’t any benefit of oil pulling. Not for controlling gum disease, whitening teeth, or reducing tooth decay.
The most important news to take away from the use of oil pulling is the significant risk of causing or contributing to lipoid pneumonia. This lung disease happens when aspirating oil or having oil migrate down into the airway. Patients with any respiratory compromise, with or without related cough are highly susceptible to lipoid pneumonia from oil pulling.
A comprehensive video is available here:
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/the-risks-of-oil-pulling/
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