Home Remedies For Toothaches
There is no wrong time for a patient to call and have their teeth checked out if they suspect a toothache, but many choose to see if the pain is temporary before making an appointment. This then means determining when a call is necessary. Tooth pain that lasts more than a few days or gets worse rather than better means it's time to ask a dentist what's going on. There are many remedies for toothaches, including ones individuals can implement in the comfort of their home. With this in mind, here are some of the best home remedies for treating toothaches now.
Rinse With Salt Water
One of the easiest ways to get rid of pain from a mild toothache is to rinse with salt water. Many toothaches are caused by simple problems such as food stuck between teeth and a small infection. Since these are health issues that can go away without serious medical intervention, rinsing with salt water speeds up the process and makes it easy for patients to know if calling their dentist is necessary or not. Patients should follow the simplest formula when rinsing to ensure they do this properly.
Patients should begin by mixing a half teaspoon of salt with warm water. A full glass of warm water is enough, but patients must be sure they are mixing the salt in well, or it will not be effective. Rinsing helps remove particles and germs stuck between teeth, and it also helps alleviate inflammation. The salt helps bring swelling in the gums down to relieve the pain. It may hurt for a day or two, but it will typically stop after that if the infection is minor.
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Use A Cold Compress
One of the most common causes of toothaches is trauma. Perhaps patients were hit in the face during a fight, injured playing sports, or involved in a car accident. Their face and mouth might experience pain from the trauma associated with whatever they experienced, and it might feel like a toothache. If patients suspect this is what's wrong, they should use a cold compress to relieve pain. The cold works as a numbing agent to relieve pain, and it must be applied to the area where the pain is prevalent by constricting blood vessels in the area. Not only does this method help minimize pain, but it also helps reduce any swelling that makes the pain more serious. This might be a temporary fix while the patient waits for their injury to heal, but it's a simple way to relieve a toothache.
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Apply Clove Oil
Applying clove oil to the painful area helps reduce swelling, which also reduces pain associated with toothaches. Clove oil contains a natural antiseptic called eugenol, which is great for minor infections and even minor injuries that might occur in the mouth or to the gum area around the tooth.
There are two effective ways to apply clove oil to the tooth to help with pain. The first is to mix one drop of the oil with a small glass of water to make a rinse out of it. Patients can then put the water and oil mixture in their mouth and swish it around for a few moments before spitting it out. Patients should do this a little at a time until they have no mixture left. The other method is to apply a few small drops of oil to a cotton ball, and then add a few drops of either water or olive oil to the cotton ball. Patients can then stick the cotton on the area that hurts and leave it there for a while. The direct pressure helps relieve swelling and pain.
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Press On Area With Peppermint Tea
Using this method, patients not only get to experience pain relief, but they also get to enjoy a nice warm cup of hot peppermint tea. When the patient presses on the affected area with a peppermint tea bag, they can numb that area. The numbness takes the pain away for instant relief. It also helps soothe the gums if the patient suffers from sensitive gums even when not dealing with a toothache.
Patients can apply a peppermint tea bag to their mouth using one of two options. Both options require steeping a tea bag in warm to hot water for a few minutes. Individuals can then remove the tea bag from the tea and let it cool down enough so it's still warm but not hot, and then apply it to the infected tooth or gum area. Leave it there for a few minutes to help numb the area. If patients don't want to use a warm tea bag, they can put the tea bag in the freezer to chill it, and then put it on the infected area.
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Chew On Fresh Garlic
It might not sound like something anyone would love to do, but chewing on fresh garlic to relieve the pain you're feeling. Garlic works wonders in many ways, including being a natural born killer of bacteria considered harmful to oral health through tooth decay and gum disease. When individuals use garlic to kill it, they make their mouth healthier. However, this is not all garlic can do. Patients can crush a clove of garlic to create a type of paste and add a little bit of salt to the mix and put it on the infected area of their mouth for pain relief. If patients want to get to the point sooner, they can simply chew on a fresh clove of garlic to reduce toothache pain.