Manuka, Propolis & Sea Salt for Natural Oral Care

Do you know what the #1 reason for poison control calls involving children is? Ingestion of fluoride toothpaste. If that isn’t a reason to switch up your kid’s oral care routine, we don’t know what is! 

In case you do need more convincing or just love to learn, let’s take a look at the growing evidence between overall health and our oral health. Many issues, such as cardiovascular & respiratory diseases, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, dementia & more, have been linked to periodontal diseases.

Unbiased studies show that fluoride does not prevent any harmful bacteria. This knowledge and growing concern about fluoride exposure and toxicity has increased the popularity of natural oral care options. 

If you have explored the world of clean oral care, you’ve likely heard of oil pulling and various essential oils to incorporate into your routine. 

What you may not have heard of are the wide-ranging oral benefits of Manuka Honey, Manuka Oil, Propolis, and Sea Salt. In fact, you can replace your family’s entire routine with these ingredients!

Let’s start with the benefits of each ingredient:

Manuka Honey: This is probably the most surprising out of the group because of its natural sugar content. Yet, study after study shows that manuka helps reduce plaque by preventing the development of biofilms, which is what makes plaque so hard to remove. It also restricts bacteria formation preventing tooth cavities and other gum problems like periodontal disease, gingivitis, bleeding, receding gums, dry mouth, and bad breath. This is not for use on children under one-year-old. 

Manuka Oil: If you haven’t met Tea Tree Oil’s more powerful cousin, let us introduce you! Manuka oil is shown to be up to 33x more effective against most bacteria than tea tree oil. It has also been tested alongside peppermint oil against two of the most common oral pathogens and again found more effective. Manuka oil is generally considered one of the most antibacterial & antimicrobial oils in existence. 

Propolis: another amazing compound with the ability to prevent plaque formation! Plaque is considered to be the main cause of most oral diseases. It also fights bad bacteria and canker sores.

Sea Salt: many use a salt gargle for sore throats, but it can also help soothe bleeding gums and heal canker sores faster. It may also speed recovery after dental surgery. The thought is that a sea salt rinse can balance your mouth’s pH levels, making it an inhospitable environment for bad bacteria. 

Now that you know why to use these four key ingredients, let’s discuss how to use them.

There are a plethora of ways you can incorporate manuka honey, oil, propolis, and sea salt into your & your child’s routine. To some extent, how you use it will depend on just how DIY you want to go.  You can find a ton of natural oral care recipes online, such as these from our friend Stacy of No Fuss Natural.

Here we will explore a simple routine to use the products without full-blown recipes:

Step one: Add one drop of manuka oil to one tablespoon of coconut oil.**

Step two: Swish the oil around in your mouth for 15-20 minutes - or for as long as they can do it. Some swishing is better than none! Make it a game and see who can go longer.

Step three: Spit oil into a trashcan (it can clog your pipes!) 

Step four: using a clean finger, apply manuka honey to your teeth and gums and gently brush your teeth using a toothbrush

Step five: add a quarter teaspoon of sea salt and 5 drops of propolis to a cup of warm water.

Step six: gargle & swish the salt rinse. Spit out when done!

**Note: Oil pulling is best for older kids as you do not want to swallow the oil once done.

We’d love to hear what you do to a gold star at the dentist's office! Write us a note and let us know.