Toxic Free DIY Mini Series: Mouthwash and Toothpowder -

Yes, folks, you too can make your own tooth powder and mouthwash with just a few simple ingredients— many of which you may already have in your home. The ones you don’t will be pretty cheap making this a very economical pursuit. In addition, you’ll be skipping out on all the questionable ingredients from store-bought dental hygiene products. Not to mention saving the earth, one plastic toothpaste-tube and mouthwash-bottle at a time. The very best part? They work! My mouth has never felt better.

(These concoctions were inspired by “Making It: Radical Home Ec For A Post-Consumer World” by Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen.)Are you ready for the easiest recipes… ever!? OK. Get set, GO!

Tooth Powder

Ingredients:

• small jar with lid, preferably glass (I use a baby food jar)

• baking soda (find it here)

• peppermint essential oil (find it here)

Method:

Put the baking soda in the jar. Add peppermint oil to taste, starting with maybe 10 or 15 drops. Stir with the handle of your toothbrush to distribute the oil. I’ve found that occasional stirring throughout the course of the batch’s life is helpful, too.

To use, wet your toothbrush and dip it in the jar. Brush your teeth!

Mouthwash

Ingredients:

• medium-sized jar with a lid, preferably glass (I use an old olive jar)

• water

• baking soda (find it here)

• peppermint essential oil (find it here)

• tea tree oil (optional) (find it here)

Method

Use about a tablespoon of baking soda for a cup of water. Again, experiment with the peppermint oil-start with maybe 20 drops. Only use a TINY BIT of the tea tree oil. Like, a drop. Two, max. (Really. It’s very strong and can be toxic. I often omit it if I’m feeling particularly uncoordinated that day, because my tea tree oil bottle doesn’t have a drop dispenser.)

Put it all in the jar. Shake well before each use.

Toothache Home Remedy

Despite your best efforts at dental hygiene, DIY or otherwise, you might still be plagued (not to be confused with “plaqued”) by the occasional toothache. Have no fear. Getting rid of that is easy peasy, no chemical pain killers necessary.

(I’ve heard that this is a Chinese remedy.)

Ingredients:

• clove buds (find it here)

Seriously, that’s it.

Method:

Simply remove the bulbous head of the clove from the stem. Get maybe 5 or 6 of them (or fewer, if you have sensitive taste buds). Chew them near the toothache. You’ll get all numb. Repeat as needed.

Vanessa Query writes the blog They Call Me Oystergirl, which is all about real food and paleo living in Rhode Island (and beyond). She loves DIY projects and making things from scratch.

This post is part of: Sunday School, Clever Chicks Hop, Thank Goodness Its Monday, Natural Living Linkup, Homestead Barn Hop, Fat Tuesdays, Family Table Tuesday, Traditional Tuesdays, Healthy Tuesdays, Titus 2sday, Backyard Farming Connection, Teach Me Tuesdays, Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays, Gathering Spot, EcoKids Tuesday, Tutorial Tuesday, Tuned-In Tuesday, Frugal Days Sustainable Ways, Healthy 2day Wednesday, Wicked Awesome Wednesday, Party Wave Wednesdays, Homemaking Linkup, Seasonal Celebration, Fresh Food Wednesday, Whole Food Wednesdays, Pennywise Platter, Creative Juice, The Mommy Club, Your Green Resource, Simple Lives Thursday, Tasty Traditions, Thank Your Body Thursday, HomeAcre Hop, Natural Living LInkup, Old Fashioned Friday, Fight Back Fridays, Fresh Bites Friday,

15 Comments

Thank you!!

That toothpaste seems like it would be really good, and so much better for the body than fluoride. Thanks for sharing at A Humble Bumble, Loriel! 🙂

Loriel @ Healthy Roots, Happy Soul says:

May 10, 2013 at 3:57 pm

WAY better than fluoride!

Reply

Excellent, easy recipes. Thanks!

I’ve ordered some Bentonite clay and I’m looking forward to making my own tooth powder with it, plus a few more ingredients. Three cheers for making our own home and body care products!

Loriel @ Healthy Roots, Happy Soul says:

May 10, 2013 at 3:57 pm

Hip, Hip, Horray!!!

Reply

Perfect timing - I just ran out of toothpaste and was gonna search for a healthy alternative. Thanks!

I haven’t read very much about making tooth and mouth products. Love this! Thanks so much for linking up to The Gathering Spot this. Have a wonderful week!

Thanks for sharing with us at Eco-Kids Tuesday!! Hope you join us again today!

Interesting! We’ve been thinking about switching to homemade toiletries. I’m going to pin this recipe for future reference. Thank you for sharing it with the HomeAcre Hop! Look forward to having you back tomorrow.

Loriel @ Healthy Roots, Happy Soul says:

May 10, 2013 at 3:57 pm

Sweet! I hope you like it!

Reply

what is your potion sizing? I.E. 1 cup this 1 cup that?

Vanessa says:

May 10, 2013 at 4:06 pm

My tooth powder jar holds 4 ounces (so I use maybe a 1/3 cup of baking soda) and the mouthwash jar holds a pint (so maybe a 1-3/4 cups of water + 2 T baking soda). Hope that helps!

Reply