Doing simple things that can easily become a daily routine is a great way to improve your health and give yourself a little “me” time. I was feeling a little under the weather one day and wanted to focus on some “self-care” activities to boost my energy and bring some colour to my mood. Recently, I have been hearing more and more about oil pulling and thought I would give it a try. If you have never heard of it, oil pulling is basically swishing around oil in your mouth for about 20 minutes….sounds kind of gross right? It’s really not bad and a lot more enjoyable than that harsh, chemical mouth wash that most people use every day.

Oil pulling actually has a ton of health benefits such as, clearing up your skin, improving oral hygiene, whitening your teeth, bringing moisture to your lips and throat and it can even improve kidney function. The antibacterial properties of the oil (I used good quality coconut oil) pulls out bacteria and fungus from your mouth which leads to all those great benefits I mentioned.

Here’s what you do:

1. Measure out 2 teaspoons of oil and put it in your mouth
2. Swish the oil around your mouth and between your soon to be pearly whites
3. After about 15-20 minutes, spit out the liquid into your garbage, not the sink
4. Rinse your mouth out with salt water
5. Brush and floss your teeth
6. SMILE

After I tried oil pulling I felt fresh, clean and ready to get off the coach and do something with my day. I’m so glad I got passed my initial thought of, “you want me to do what with that coconut oil?!” and gave something new a try. It’s something I’ve added to my daily routine!