If your morning breath is too strong for your morning toothbrush, it may be time to step up your oral health game. Have you ever contemplated scraping your tongue?
Tongue scraping – or Jihwa Prakshalana – is an old Ayurvedic procedure that entails gently rubbing a tongue scraper (a piece of metal or plastic bent into a U-shape) over the length of your tongue to remove dead cells, food waste, and germs. This technique improves poor breath, heightens your sense of taste, and aids with digestion.
Tongue scraping – or Jihwa Prakshalana – is an old Ayurvedic procedure that entails gently rubbing a tongue scraper (a piece of metal or plastic bent into a U-shape) over the length of your tongue to remove dead cells, food waste, and germs. This technique improves poor breath, heightens your sense of taste, and aids with digestion.
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Ayurveda is a comprehensive medical practice that started thousands of years ago in India. The term itself stems from two Sanskrit roots: ‘Ayu’ (life) and ‘Veda’ (knowledge or science). Unsurprisingly, Ayurveda has been trending in the wellness business.
Sara Herandi, the founder of DEJA, a new Ayurvedic health firm, thinks that including tongue scraping in your wellness regimen may help maintain a healthy digestive tract.
“If a buildup on the tongue blocks your taste buds, it becomes more difficult for your mouth’s receptors to communicate with the brain, preventing the enzymes from being released and delaying the very first stage of digestion,” she explained. “Tongue scraping removes this buildup, allowing for easier communication between the body and brain.”
Ayurveda believes that complete health starts with a healthy tongue since this fosters good digestion, which results in a balanced and invigorated state of being. It’s pretty simple to determine if your tongue is presenting a good condition or not. If it is bloated, red, cracked, fuzzy, pale, or has teeth marks, this is a solid indicator that you need to improve your self-care.
Additionally, there is a substantial study on the usefulness and advantages of tongue scraping. According to 2008 research, a conventional toothbrush was statistically considerably less successful in cleaning the tongue in patients with severe oral malodor (poor breath) than a scraping device. However, the research revealed that the expected impact was only temporary.
Another research examined the efficacy of toothbrushes and tongue scrapers in treating bad breath and found that, although both treatments removed the tongue covering, the tongue scraper was more successful at lowering the generation of volatile sulfur compounds (a source of foul breath).