Get ready to have the cleanest mouth in town—meet the tongue scraper!
I hope you’re all holding up during the coronavirus lockdown. I’ve been really using this break to focus on my daily health practices, taking lots of time to slow down and nurture my body. As a result, I’m feeling the best I have in a long time! The very first thing I do every morning, as soon as I wake up, is use my tongue scraper—and I want to share this odd but revolutionary oral hygiene tool with you all.
I mean, since you’re possibly confined in close quarters with your loved ones, it’s a good idea to have fantastic breath, right?
Tongue scraping is an ancient Ayurvedic practice that has been shown in scientific studies to improve dental health. I was first introduced to it in 2016 when I did my 200 hr yoga teacher training. I studied under Elka Haeckel at Elka Yoga & Wellness here in San Diego, CA. Elka is also a certified Ayurvedic practitioner, so she makes her yoga training unique by including a special study into Ayurveda. My world was rocked learning all about it, and I’ll share more here on the blog soon. In short, it’s the sister science of yoga—it’s like a holistic guidebook to wellness. Many of the practices have become mainstream over time because they’ve been proven to WORK.
Tongue scraping is one of them!
So is dry brushing, using a neti pot, and moisturizing with coconut oil. If you want to learn more about Ayurveda as a whole, I highly recommend picking up a copy of The Idiot’s Guide to Ayurveda by Sahara Rose.
A clean tongue is key to our overall oral health.
I feel like tongues get neglected in the dental conversation. But over time bacteria, debris, and dead cells build up on our tongues, which leads to bad breath and dental decay.
There’s no phrase less sexy than “dental decay.”
You can get some of this off by using your toothbrush on your tongue, but a tongue scraper has been proven to be more effective.
According to Ayurveda, all toxins begin in the mouth, and when it builds up on your tongue, the toxicity spreads to your gastrointestinal tract and the rest of your body. This is true! Bad dental health can lead to heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Ayurvedic practitioners always ask their patients to stick out their tongue—you can tell a lot by a tongue’s color and texture.
The bacteria on your tongue form a white, mucous coating, which in Ayurveda is called “ama.” Use your tongue scraper once and you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about. You’ll see it when you scrape.
Benefits of using a tongue scraper:
- improves dental health
- freshens breath
- prevents gum infections and recessions
- improves immunity
- enhances taste buds
- improves digestion
- enhances saliva production (critical for food digestion)
Your body begins digesting food as soon as it enters your mouth. Your saliva begins breaking down the food and sends signals to your digestive system so it can prepare to break it down further. When your tongue is coated with ama, your body can’t tell as clearly what’s going on. With a reduced microbial load, your tongue can taste and signal more effectively.
Tongue scraping is SO satisfying. After scraping I immediately have a better taste on my tongue—it’s a full fresh feeling. I never miss doing it because my mouth just tastes off if I don’t. And, I have to add, I’ve never had a cavity and my dentists always remark on my dental health! You’ll become as obsessed as I am with this, I promise.
This is the exact tongue scraper I use and recommend getting.
I’m pretty specific about this tongue scraper for a few reasons. Many tongue scrapers are copper, but it’s possible to get heavy metal toxicity from copper overload. Estrogen increases copper retention, making women more susceptible to this. So I say, why risk it? I’ve also seen some versions made from plastic, which is a hormone disrupter we want nowhere near our mouths! The specific tongue scraper you use is important.
Stainless steel is the safest option. (Plus the silver makes it pretty aesthetically pleasing next to your toothbrush.) This one is surgical grade and is smooth on the tongue, with comfortable grip handles. It’s only $8 and will last a lifetime. I love it!
How To Use Your Tongue Scraper
It’s super simple! You want to tongue scrape first thing in the morning, before you brush your teeth, and ideally before you drink anything, like water or coffee.
It literally takes less than a minute to do, making it one of the most efficient and effective things you can add to your morning routine.
- Hold one end of your tongue scraper in each hand
- Look in a mirror
- Stick out your tongue
- Apply gentle pressure and swipe from the back of your tongue forward toward the tip (don’t scrape too aggressively!)
- Rinse the ama off of your tongue scraper (it’s quite satisfying)
- Repeat 10 times
- Swish a drink of water around in your mouth, then spit to finish
- Rinse your tongue scraper and store in a clean, dry place
- Follow up by brushing your teeth
- Deep clean your tongue scraper occasionally by washing or running through the dishwasher
Here’s a visual as well to help:
Be sure to use your tongue scraper every day.
As with any wellness practice, consistency is key to results! While it’s wonderful to scrape your tongue whenever you can, you’ll discover better health when you do it every day.
By the way—a tongue scraper makes an unusual and helpful gift (perfect for a stocking stuffer). Especially for your significant other—you both benefit from their better breath.
So, here’s to clean mouths for all! I hope you all find you enjoy scraping your tongue as much as I do.
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Have you tried tongue scraping? Share your experience with me in the Comments below!
xo,
Amy
This post is not sponsored, but there are affiliate links throughout this post. I genuinely love these products and know you will, too. Thanks for supporting the blog!
