Toothache Remedies

Home remedies for toothache pain relief can be extremely helpful if you get a toothache in the middle of the night or when you are far from home and you can not find a dentist to help. You may also prefer to use a natural toothache remedy instead of a pain medicine to achieve pain relief. Some of the toothache home remedies have proven to be very effective in relieving tooth pain and discomfort.

The home remedies for toothache discussed in this article are the most popular and commonly used. Some of them have been used to ease tooth pain since ancient times.

Be aware that toothache home remedies may not have the same effectiveness for all patients or all types of pain, and some of these remedies may not be suitable for your specific dental problems. A hot compress may help a patient with a tmj tooth pain but will worsen the pain for someone who has a tooth abscess.

It is advised to ask your dentist before you use a toothache home remedy, especially in case of repeated use.

Cold compress – Ice pack

Placing an ice pack or a cold compress against the outside of the cheek over the area that hurts can relieve some of the tooth pain. This toothache remedy is very effective for tooth decay, abscess or joint toothaches and whenever there is tissue inflammation. The application of cold can decrease the discomfort by reducing both the tooth pain and swelling. An ice pack can be applied several times a day but for not more than 15 minutes each time.

Another related home remedy suggests rubbing or pressing an ice cube directly on the painful tooth area. This can have a numbing effect on the nerve endings and offer fast and effective but short term tooth pain relief. Eating an ice cream can help a child with toothache.

Clove Oil

Use of clove oil is maybe the most popular toothache home remedy for pain relief in folk medicine for many years. It contains eugenol, which is a natural antibacterial, antiseptic and pain killer. Clove oil is able to effectively relieve much of the pain and discomfort of toothaches related to tooth decay, fractured teeth or damaged restorations. Thanks to its antibacterial properties, it can also help in fighting tooth and gum infections.

A mixture of clove oil and zinc oxide is being used widely by dentists as a disinfectant and pain reliever placed below temporary fillings, during the preparation for dental crown or bridge placement or root canal treatments. Besides toothache pain relief, clove oil has been mentioned to prevent mouth ulcers and plaque formation.

You can find clove oil at drugstores and supermarkets sold either as clove oil or eugenol. It appears as a clear or pale yellow oily liquid. With a 2 year shelf life when stored in a cool, dry, and dark place, you should always have some of it available in your house, to be prepared in case of a toothache.

How to use clove oil: Clove oil can be applied directly on the pain area or you can soak a cotton swab with a few drops of clove oil and place it over the painful tooth for about an hour at a time. If you have a visible cavity or tooth fracture, try to place some clove oil exactly into the cavity or the fractured area of the tooth. For toothaches affecting back teeth, you can put the cotton swab between the two jaws over the aching tooth and bite down gently to keep it in place. You can repeat use 2 to 3 times daily.

Clove oil’s analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties may last for an hour or so, numbing the affected tooth and the surrounding area. It is recommended to dilute the clove oil in some olive oil before soaking the cotton swab with it (2-3 drops of clove oil in 1/4 teaspoon olive oil).

If you do not have clove oil, dried cloves can also be used as a toothache remedy. You can either chew a clove slowly and allow its ingredients to dissolve in the mouth, or you can grid a clove and pack it against the tooth.

Side effects of clove oil: Continuous use of undiluted clove oil can cause burning and tissue or nerve damage. Over dosing can cause vomiting, sore throat, seizure, difficulty breathing, kidney failure, or liver damage. Clove oil should not be used by people having bleeding disorders, liver and kidney problems, diabetic patients, small children and pregnant women.

Salt Water

One of the simpler and easiest toothache relief home remedies is rinsing with warm salt water. Dilute one teaspoon of salt into a glass of warm (not hot) water. Rinse your mouth several times and spit it out. It can help remove any food particles being lodged in tooth cavities or between teeth and gums causing irritation and pain. Using salt water can provide toothache pain relief, reduces the risk of tooth infection, and sooths sore gums.

If you experience pain after a tooth extraction or oral surgery use slightly warm or cold water and rinse gently. If it is too warm it may cause bleeding of dissolve the blood clot in the extraction site causing a dry socket.

Other popular toothache remedies include:

• Hot compress - Application of heat is not recommended for all toothaches; actually it may worsen the pain in certain cases. Heat should not be used as a toothache remedy when there is swelling or any indication of infection because it can promote swelling, help the growth of bacteria and spread the infection. If you have an inflamed pulp (pulpitis) applying heat will immediately cause the pain to increase due to the increase of pressure inside the pulp chamber. However, a hot compress can offer significant tooth pain relief in case of tmj problems by helping to relax muscle tension.
• Tea bag - Use a wet tea bag, and place it on the sore tooth for several minutes till the pain subsides.
• Tea Tree Oil - Tea tree oil is considered as a natural healing agent. It is a home remedy for tooth pain relief that can be effective, either by applying directly on the tooth similar to the clove oil, or by rinsing the mouth with a glassful of water containing a few drops of tea tree oil.
• Garlic - Crush a fresh clove of garlic, mix it with some salt, and hold it onto the aching tooth. Remove it when it begins to sting. Garlic has natural antibacterial properties and helps relieve the pain of an aching tooth.
• Raw potato - If you have lost a filling or cracked a tooth, its inner tissues become exposed causing extreme sensitivity and intense toothache. A natural home remedy to provide tooth pain relief is to use a small piece of raw potato to cover the exposed tooth in the same way your dentist could use a temporary filling or crown.

• The following home remedies have also been suggested for toothache pain relief.
  • hydrogen peroxide rinse
  • fresh onion
  • vanilla extract
  • juice of wheat grass
  • olive oil
  • oil of oregano
  • bark of blueberry and vinegar
  • Asafoetida and lemon juice

Toothache home remedies can provide an alternative treatment for tooth pain relief when a dentist is unavailable. They may work better for some people than others and for some types of tooth pain.

Even if toothache home remedies achieve to relieve the pain, you should always visit your dentist in order to identify the root cause of the toothache and prevent more dental problems and toothaches