Toothpowder / paste is the first thing that we put into our mouths when we wake up. And what terrible things are added to the store-bought chemical-based foaming ones! Just google 'SLS', 'Formaldehyde', 'Triclosan', 'Propylene Glycol' and what deadly diseases they are known to contribute to: from cancer to organ failure! And since our gums are extremely absorbant (the reason oil-pulling works) we end up pumping them straight into our bloodstream the first thing every morning. Our bodies deserve much better than that!
But the good news is that more and more people are turning to home-made toothpaste and toothpowder. Among my 200 blogspots, this post from three years ago still tops the list as the most-visited page! :) And I've just upgraded it with new information.
Here is a youtube video from a workshop that a friend Nina and I did in Auroville.
Points to keep in mind while preparing your own toothpowder
* Only two or three ingredients are sufficient to prepare your tooth powder as long as the they can perform cleansing, freshening, healing and anti-bacterial actions. Detoxifying, foaming, sweetening and whitening actions can be optional.
* Choose your ingredients based on whether you like your toothpowder to taste bitter, salty, sweet or spicy.
* All moist / green ingredients are best shade-dried, ground in a blender and fine-sieved.
* Each of these ingredients has a different particle size and some, like cinnamon sticks and soapnut, are particularly difficult to grind. So mix all the powders together and sieve them using a fine sieve so that the final product has the same particle size throughout. Remember not to heat/ over grind them too much, especially when using a mixie, and allow the powders to cool before re-grinding.
* Connect with plants around you: Search for the properties of herbs in your farm / neighbourhood – ask your grandmother, elders and Siddha doctors. And your own intuition and discover new ones that can be added.
Experiment. Enjoy. Share.
But the good news is that more and more people are turning to home-made toothpaste and toothpowder. Among my 200 blogspots, this post from three years ago still tops the list as the most-visited page! :) And I've just upgraded it with new information.
Here is a youtube video from a workshop that a friend Nina and I did in Auroville.
Points to keep in mind while preparing your own toothpowder
* Only two or three ingredients are sufficient to prepare your tooth powder as long as the they can perform cleansing, freshening, healing and anti-bacterial actions. Detoxifying, foaming, sweetening and whitening actions can be optional.
* Choose your ingredients based on whether you like your toothpowder to taste bitter, salty, sweet or spicy.
* All moist / green ingredients are best shade-dried, ground in a blender and fine-sieved.
* Each of these ingredients has a different particle size and some, like cinnamon sticks and soapnut, are particularly difficult to grind. So mix all the powders together and sieve them using a fine sieve so that the final product has the same particle size throughout. Remember not to heat/ over grind them too much, especially when using a mixie, and allow the powders to cool before re-grinding.
* Connect with plants around you: Search for the properties of herbs in your farm / neighbourhood – ask your grandmother, elders and Siddha doctors. And your own intuition and discover new ones that can be added.
Experiment. Enjoy. Share.
3 comments:
Thanks so much Sangee <3
Thanks Sangeetha for the recipe, it works well. trying it the second time and each time am trying different flavors. I added a bit of neem sticks too ...
Hello mam,
Can I know the rarios of ingredients to take? TIA.
Post a Comment