Now, I know every single one of us was once upon a time a kid that probably refused to brush our teeth, or pretended to brush them so we didn't REALLY have to. Most of you have probably had cavities, and some of you may have had deep cleanings, root canals, crowns, and some other not so fun dental procedures.
While I'm certainly not a dentist, I definitely support brushing your teeth first thing in the morning, and I'll tell you why!
Saliva is responsible for a number of things (like breaking down food), but it also helps redistribute and cleanse bacteria. For some of us, at night the swallowing reflex relaxes during deep sleep, resulting in a saliva build up that spills out into drool. In others, especially those that sleep with our mouths open, swallowing continues as normal, but the saliva dries up as saliva production naturally slows during sleep. In either case, that bacteria builds up in the mouth overnight, resulting in bad breath, a coated tongue, or even dry mouth.
That's right, long story short, when you wake up in the morning your mouth is filled with all that yucky bacteria! You may also see an increased coated tongue in the morning when your body is detoxing (like, say, if you are working with a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and cleaning up skincare products and food, and getting all elimination pathways open so you can properly detox...I digress!).
What do I recommend to combat this yucky disgusting stinkage of a mouth? First thing in the morning! (Well, maybe pee first). Grab your tongue scraper! If you don't have one, you should. They're super cheap and amazing little tools. Grab one like the one I use here.
You don't have to scrape hard and you don't have to spend 10 minutes doing this. Just grab your scraper, angle it at the back of the tongue (but not to where you gag!), and gently scrape down the tongue. I rinse after each scrape, and probably do 5-10 scrapes every morning!
Next -- BRUSH. YOUR. TEETH! While I don't like toxic ingredients and highly recommend flouride free toothpaste, the toothpaste itself doesn't make a huge difference in my opinion. We like Himalaya Cinnamon Toothpaste - Click Here. We're also pretty minimal when it comes to toothbrushes. I know people that love their electric, and we do too, but I just can't have a big clunky charging thing on my counter! A couple of years ago we found Quip, and absolutely love it!
We mount those cute little slim holders to our mirrors (they include an adhesive strip) and they're so slim most people don't even notice they're there! Our replacement heads also auto-ship every 3 months and it includes a new battery too. They really thought of everything! Now, I'm in no way affiliated with the brands above, I'm just sharing with you because I'm BIG on dental care. If you are looking for Quip, simply go to HERE. They're always running amazing deals for new Quip members!
Happy Scraping and Brushing!
Comments