Oil treatment

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The oil cure (also oil pulling , oil sucking or oil chewing ) is an alternative medical Ayurvedic method in which the mouth is rinsed with vegetable oils . This is said to remove toxins from the mouth and cure or alleviate many diseases.

use

During the oil treatment, a tablespoon of cold-pressed sunflower oil (all golden-yellow sunflower oils available in grocery stores are cold-pressed) or other vegetable oils such as olive oil , sesame oil or coconut oil should be slowly moved back and forth in the mouth for about 10 to 20 minutes and pulled through between the teeth. This oil should then be spat out and the mouth should be rinsed out with water. According to the recommendations, the whole thing should be done in the morning for about eight to 14 days.

If the oil turns milky white after rinsing the mouth for 20 minutes, this is because the enzymes in the saliva have broken down some of the oil components.

Evaluation and criticism

There is no extensive evidence of a positive effect (remedial action for headaches, skin problems, rheumatism , osteoarthritis and an improvement in bladder and kidney problems ). Nor is there any evidence that oil pulling is generally beneficial for dental health. Only a few studies on the topic have been published so far. Among other things, studies at the Meenakshi Ammal Dental College in Chennai and at the PG Department of Microbiology, VHNSN College, Virudhunagar - both in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu - which demonstrate a significant effectiveness of the oil treatment on Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus, among others, became known . Both studies used sesame oil but are methodologically poor and too short-lived. Some international studies also refer to the antibiotic effects of vegetable oils in general.

The treatment recommendations circulating in German-speaking countries can be traced back to two publications in the journals Natur & Heilen (author: Günther W. Frank) and Natur und Medizin in 1991. Both articles refer to a Ukrainian doctor named Fedor Karach , who is said to have presented the method at an alleged "All-Ukrainian Congress of Oncologists and Bacteriologists". Karach, in turn, took over the oil treatment from Siberian shamans . Exact time and source information is missing, and there are no citable publications by Doctor Karach.

The underlying disease model, according to which “toxins” and “waste products” accumulate in the body, which have to be removed (“ purification ”), has been abandoned by medicine since the 18th century, as it is neither scientifically verifiable nor plausible. However , it is still very common in alternative medicine . According to the recommendations, it is important that the oil is not swallowed after rinsing, as it is contaminated with toxins and bacteria. The fact that oil pulling can absorb toxins or pollutants from the oral mucosa contradicts scientific findings.

The effect can be compared to oil-based mouthwashes.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Bernd Kerschner: Oil pulling: high-fat dental hygiene without proof of effectiveness. In: Medicine transparent . January 7, 2020, accessed July 8, 2020 .
  2. ↑ New Scientist: Interview: The halitosis guru. September 19, 2007, accessed May 20, 2010 .