At a glance:
- Ozone oil pulling is swishing ozonated oils in the mouth for oral health benefits.
- Ozone oil pulling can use various types of oils, including coconut, olive, sesame, and more. Each has distinct benefits and components as an oil and ozonated oil.
- For ozone oil pulling, it’s best to choose an oil with standardized production with a cold process and third-party testing for harmful substances.
- Ozone oil pulling promotes oral health — supporting a balanced oral microbiome, clean teeth, and healthy gums, along with a fresh, clean-feeling mouth.
- Start by swishing 1 tablespoon of ozone oil pulling solution for a few minutes daily and then spit it in the trash.
While this practice may have only recently gained attention, oil pulling is an Ayurvedic technique that has been around for centuries. While it’s ancient, research is only now beginning to understand how it works and its benefits.
In this article, we explain how ozone oil pulling can help support oral and gum health. You’ll learn about the process, different types of oils used, and the science behind how ozone interacts with oil molecules.
What is ozone oil pulling?
Oil pulling vs ozone oil pulling
Ayurvedic texts first described oil pulling as swishing oils in the mouth for prescribed periods for various oral and whole-body health benefits. One could oil pull with sesame, coconut, grapeseed oils, or other plant or herbal oil blends. The oil is moved between the teeth and gums, covering as much of the oral cavity as possible. As the oil is mixed around, it mixes with saliva and increases in volume.
Typically, oil pulling should be done daily to get the best benefits. However, it should not replace your other dental practices, like brushing or flossing, but instead be a component of your comprehensive oral hygiene routine.
Some modern research has confirmed many oral health benefits of oil pulling. For example, a systematic review of coconut oil pulling examined four studies involving 182 participants. Based on these, coconut oil pulling significantly reduced bacteria count in the saliva and reduced plaque index scores, compared to placebo. However, the review concluded that we need more and higher-quality studies.
Ozone oil pulling means oil pulling with a blend of ozonated culinary oil. In addition to the benefits you get from oil pulling, you get additional benefits from the ozonated byproducts of the oils.
How to do ozone oil pulling
- Place 1 tablespoon of ozonated oil pulling solution in your mouth.
- Swish the oil around for up to 20 minutes (you can start with 5-10 and gradually increase)
- Once this time is up, you simply spit out the solution. It should have a creamy-white appearance and have increased in volume. Do not swallow the oil – this is important. Move it around and gargle like you would with a traditional mouthwash.
- Dispose of the oil in a trash can, to avoid it clogging the sink.
- Rinse your mouth thoroughly with warm water multiple times to help ensure all the oil is removed.
- Finish by brushing your teeth as normal.
You can repeat this practice up to twice daily, but most people do it three times a week as part of preventative care.
What happens to the oils when you ozonate them?
To understand what ozone oil pulling does, let’s first learn about what’s in ozonated oil.
Ozone is a highly reactive gas with three oxygen atoms. Oil ozonation means bubbling (infusing) the ozone gas through the oil. This allows ozone to react with oil molecules in a way that can change the oil’s chemical properties. These chemical reactions include oxidation, creating ozonides, polymers, and breakdowns of these byproducts.
Unsaturated fatty acids and many plant essential oils have double bonds between carbons, which keep the oils liquid. Ozonation adds ozone to these double bonds, resulting in ozonides. Ozonides are unstable products, which can then undergo further reactions and become secondary oxidation products, such as peroxides, alcohols, aldehydes, and polymers.
Based on our internal tests, our ozone oil and oil pulling solution have quite stable peroxide levels, although they decay over time. The oils retain about 80% of their peroxides at the 2-year mark, and carry a 3-year unrefrigerated shelf life from the ozonation date.
How do ozonated oils work?
When you apply or consume ozonated oils, the ozonides and other secondary oxidation products can interact with your cellular components, immune cells, and cellular components of microbes in your mouth, gut, or body. At lower concentrations, they can trigger small cellular stress responses that support the mouth's normal renewal processes.
What type of ozonated oil is best for oil pulling?
There are many types of plant-based oils that you can use for oil pulling. Each has its own properties, flavors, strengths, and weaknesses. Your choice ultimately depends on your personal preference, availability, and desired effects.
We use ozone olive oil as the main component of our ozone oil pulling solution for its stability, gentleness on tissues, and wide availability.
Continue Reading
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- Shop Ozone Oils →
