you have this connection between your oral and
your gut, and it's called the oral -gut axis.
So the oral -gut axis is basically a connection,
and if it comes in balance, right, your oral
microbiome can lead to what's called gut dysbiosis.
And that's just a fancy word for, you know, your
bacterial gut in balance, which leads to digestive
and inflammatory disorders. Welcome back to Keep
It Good. I'm your host, Emily. And I'm your host,
Carly. So today we're going to be exploring the
connection between our mouth, gut, and mind.
So let's just jump right into it. Fun fact of
the day. All right. Did you know that we have
about 20 billion bacterias in our mouth? And
our mouths produce about one liter of saliva
a day. So really think about what you're swallowing.
Like literally just swallowed hard like I am
just it really grosses me out the more I think
about this whole System and how it works. Yeah,
it's pretty wild and Yeah, we're gonna show you
the good and bad of all of it. So I Mean, don't
be too scared. I mean 20 billion bacteria. That
sounds pretty terrifying, right? But there is
good bacteria. So it's not all horrible, right?
That makes sense Yeah, so we'll get into the
bad bacteria later and like how to kind of go
about that. But let's start with just some basic
oral hygiene. Okay. Well, I mean, you guys all
know you have to brush your teeth. I'm going
to go through a list of like daily what is ideal
and what will be the best for your mouth and
your oral care. So number one need to brush your
teeth twice a day, even three times with my little
ones. Our dentists suggest three times, you know,
maybe after school when they come home to or
after they have a snack. So I try to, you know,
obviously just get the two in, but if we can
do three, that'd be ideal. Do you guys like,
are your kids, my kids hate brushing their teeth.
It was a, it was, yeah, it's, it's a constant
like thing, but funny. That we did this episode
today because my friend literally just told me
yesterday about this awesome app that she got
for her kids it's called home kids it's from
colgate see download the app you get the toothbrush
it's basically a game for kids but this is actually
really cool and because. I haven't i haven't
gotten yet cuz i just learned about yesterday
but i'm intrigued because her kids she has two
boys like me pretty close in age. and they beg
her to brush their teeth because it's fun. You
like go along with the app, you follow it, and
I mean, that's one game, yeah, I'm all for, and
I will encourage that night and day, you know?
Yeah, I love that. We're always trying like,
okay, we have three different toothbrushes going,
what color do you want today, what kind of toothpaste
do you want today, you know, trying to make it
fun? Actually just updated our toothbrush. Well,
I didn't, my husband did. And it's funny because
the first night we did it, like we, I mean, your
doctor says like, yes, the electric toothbrushes
are the best, right? I always kind of had like
a regular one for a while, but my husband bought
this like aquasonic. I don't even know what it
is. It was like such an experience the first
time we did it. Like my whole body was like vibrating.
It kind of tickles, right? It's powerful. If
Tim, the tool man, Taylor made a toothbrush,
it's this because it's like just ultra powered,
like, you know, like the craziest toothbrush
you could like, it was just insane. I was like,
I'm not even at the dentist have I ever felt
this intense mouth clean, you know, but, but
it really did make a big difference. And so truly
invest in a good toothbrush. Like it's so important.
It's so important. Yeah, I agree with you there
for sure. So floss daily. Floss, floss, floss.
Get every little bit of debris you can out in
between your teeth. Even at my work, like we
keep those little handheld little dental flossers
just in between foods, but use mouthwash. I use
a very clean like, you know, has like oregano
and clove. It's not maybe the best tasting, but
it's very clean. It's made of coconut oil. I
really like that one. Eat a balanced diet. Avoid
sugary food, sugary drinks, even coffee. You
know, it can erode the enamel. So you have to
keep your teeth clean from all that after, especially
after you have something sugary. Stay hydrated.
That helps keep your saliva production up, which
does help protect your teeth as well. So you
don't want a dry mouth. Visit your dentist two
times a year. Use a mouth guard if you're someone
who grinds their teeth, like at night or puts
a lot of pressure. On their teeth, we don't want
your teeth to be cracked. Tongue scraping. Do
you scrape your tongue? Oh, always. Yeah. Always.
I know. Me too. I love it. I think it's great.
I love scraping my tongue. But I've been using
a plastic tongue scraper. Oh, me too. And I just
heard, like, obviously, that's not good. You
need to use a metal one. And, like, a metal one
would definitely scrape more off your tongue.
Oh, yeah. It makes so much more sense. So we
have to Amazon those like today. And then number
nine, oil pulling. Love it. Love it. So this
is what we're really excited to talk about. I
mean, everyone knows how to freaking brush their
teeth and do other things, right? But oil pulling,
guys, like, ah, this is something that we've
been doing. I mean, you started what? At 17.
I've been doing it for a few years, but like
we kind of went back and forth. You know, it's
hard. It's it's a hard practice to really get
into daily. I'm not there yet, but The benefits
I mean, that's the goal right to get to the daily
practice of it But yeah, this is something that
we we've been doing for like over a year now
and it's super beneficial Like it's it's just
so cool. So Emily start us off with this oil
pulling because I just I love it It is a really
cool thing. So yes, I first heard about it I
don't know, probably 20 years ago from a woman
I worked with. She worked at a naturopathic pharmacy
and she was like, oh, you need to start doing
oil pulling. I'm like, what is that? So basically
what it is, it's an ancient Ayurvedic practice
and you are putting oil into your mouth and you're
swishing it around and pulling it in and out
of like the teeth. So a little bit like mouthwash
if you can. You know picture that but you're
gonna be doing it for longer and you really want
to try and get it like I said Like in and out
I mean you could kind of I like want to do it
right now in my mouth to explain it but You're
basically swishing it around. Obviously. It's
a thicker consistency than mouthwash because
it's an oil But you're gonna do it ideally for
like 10 to 20 minutes, which is a lot I mean,
I think if you could start with five minutes
and work your way up, or like one day maybe you
get to do it for 10, maybe one day it's only
four minutes, but you're still doing something
to like get what I'll explain, like all the bad
shit out of your mouth. Yeah. Now, okay, you
might be like 20 minutes. I don't have 20 minutes
to do this and why do I want to, right? Yes.
When I first started doing it, I started with
five and then the next day or two days later,
I would be at five minutes and I'm like, oh,
you know what? That really wasn't that bad. So
then I would change my timer and do another five
minutes. All of a sudden, you got to kind of
distract yourself, right? So I was like going
through my to -do list, my whatever, just like
brain dumping, doing my thing. And then all of
a sudden 10 minutes went off and I was like...
I'm still kind of in the middle of this project
so I think I could keep going and then before
you know it's 20 minutes and you're like that
really wasn't that bad you know if you have a
project lined up like when do you when when is
the easiest for you to do it for 20 minutes I
mean I've found for me while I'm in the shower
so I might start a couple minutes before I get
in and then the whole time I'm in the shower
I'm doing the oil pulling so if I'm not washing
my hair maybe it's just 10 minutes if Because
you really can't talk while you're doing it.
So you can't talk to your kids. You have to kind
of be in your own zone. Yeah. So I do it in the
shower. I think that's easiest for me. I'm distracted
because I'm shaving my legs and washing my hair,
whatever. And that just seems to be the best
time for me. But with that... When you're done,
you also can't spit it down the drain. Don't
take a shower and then be like, okay, I've done
it long enough. I'm going to spit this oil out
down my drain because it can cause clogging in
your sink. So you also don't want to spit it
in the shower. It needs to go in the garbage,
like a tissue. Yep. Yep. Paper towel, tissue,
something like that. But you were saying too,
you want it to look kind of milky and whitish.
Yeah, when you spit it out, that's when you know
that you got a lot of bacteria out is when it's
that milky white color and the consistency. It's
so gross. That's so gross. It's so gross. Ideally,
first thing in the morning is when they suggest
you do it because you're sleeping, you're fasting,
and we want all that nasty bacteria to come out
before you start eating and drinking. I know
a ton of people, they brush their teeth first,
first, first, first thing before they even drink
any water. But this is to also remove all that
gunk out of your whole entire mouth. I don't
typically do it first thing in the morning, because
with my morning routine, I'm going to have to
get up at 4 .30 to oil pull. It's just not going
to happen. So do it when you can. Yeah, like
I said, we're not up to daily yet. What I've
been trying to do is really on the weekends because
I can sleep in a little bit more. We're not stressing
to get to school. My husband's there to help
with breakfasts or questions or whatever. And
you know, it's just easier with kids, especially
with kids. It's easier on the weekends for me
to just get that like 15, 20 minutes in. Yeah,
exactly. So daily is ideal, but even three to
four times a week, the results are incredible.
I mean, even if you could do it once a week,
though, even Sunday, Saturday morning, whatever.
Yeah. And so there was a little bit of talk like,
you know, I'm sure you're like, what are the
side effects of this, right? There can be, I
mean, you're using your jaw and your cheeks and
your tongue and everything to kind of do this
vigorous movement for a good 20 minutes. So you
can get a little bit of jaw pain in the beginning
when you're not used to it. You can maybe feel
a little bit of a headache at first. you definitely
don't want to swallow. No, not you need to spit
it out that if you swallow it, I mean, for one,
think about all that bacteria are now forcefully
putting into your digestion. But it can cause
a little bit of diarrhea and stomach ache if
swallowed. But yeah, it's almost like doing face
yoga. So I'm kind of you know, like you're really
moving it around and Yeah, the cheeks can get
a little sore or a little yeah. Yeah, like um,
like fatigued Yeah, sounds weird because one
of your cheeks then tired but well, you know
when you laugh for like Forever with your friend
like you're just like and you're like my cheeks
hurt. Oh my god I'm smiling so bad. It's kind
of like that So yeah, I mean so oil pulling the
oils that you would typically use you'd want
to use about one to two tablespoons of either
coconut, sesame, olive oil, or sunflower. Now,
you give us a little bit of info on the sunflower
and the sesame because I've never used that.
Okay, neither have I. But the sesame oil is the
traditional oil for the Ayurvedic process of
it. So the benefits are that it reduces inflammation,
the sesame oil reduces inflammation. It contains
a lot of antioxidants. It does have a milder
antibacterial effect. than the coconut oil, but
it's a strong flavor. Sesame oil is really strong.
So that would be like what taste and, you know,
of course, thickness of each oil will play a
part too in your mouth. So it's kind of going
to be personal, I think. Sunflower oil has a
light flavor. I've never even cooked with it,
so I don't know much about sunflower oil. But
light flavor, it does have some antimicrobial
benefits. But I found that it was used the most
in the clinical trials for oil pulling. So I
thought that was interesting. So maybe we should
give sunflower oil a try. Seems to be the doctors
and scientists go to. Yeah, interesting. What
about the other ones? So I was basically using
coconut oil. for the majority because it takes
the best I think. But the coconut oil is loaded
with antioxidant anti -inflammatory properties,
right? So it decreases inflammation like gum
disease, all these things. It contains lauric
acid, which kills the bacteria that leads to
decay. So right off the bat, I was starting that.
But then I started researching the olive oil
root. And olive oil is high in antibacterial
properties and particularly this bacterium, Helicobacter
pylori. And this is a bacterium that causes ulcers
and stomach cancer. And me, I mean, a couple
of years ago, I got a stomach ulcer from stress,
you know, and it just flares up every once in
a while. So I was like, oh, interesting. I'm
going to start doing the olive oil so that it
kind of helps with that. And another thing with
the olive oil is it helps to prevent any dry
mouth. So if you have dry mouth, it helps with
that as well. It's rich in polyphenols and it's
thicker. So in turn, it kind of helps with anti
-inflammatory properties too. So I haven't done
it yet. I'm still a little trepidatious about
putting the olive oil. My mouth but that's I'm
doing that this weekend because after I learned
all this stuff about the ulcers Yeah, I'm adding
that one to my list. You have to you have to
give it a try. Oh, yeah, why not? Yeah, so yeah,
I I mean I think the coconut oil would be the
best to first try. Yeah, cuz it's just it's lighter
It's it's like a thinner when it melts in your
mouth and you know kind of tastes like coconut
So you get that little flavor in there. So like
you said one or two tablespoons of oil Swish
it in your mouth for as long as you can, up to
20 minutes. You're going to spit it in the trash
or a paper towel, a napkin tissue, and then rinse
your mouth. So you can rinse with plain water,
a little bit of salted water, and then you brush
your teeth. Now you're probably saying, like,
why am I going to be doing this with oils? Right,
like, what's the point? What is the point? The
oil pulling... Removes any of the lipophilic
acids, which is your heavy metals your environmental
Toxins chemical and bacterial toxins. Okay, so
like we were saying you have 20 billion bacteria
in your mouth the oil pulling really prevents
some of the harmful ones from entering your digestion
and by doing so like if you have poor oral health
it leads to A higher risk in heart disease, stroke,
cardiovascular disease, it can lead to lung infections,
particularly pneumonia. There is a recent link
that they've been kind of correlating with dementia,
diabetes, and sepsis. So I mean, when you think
about oral health affecting the rest of your
body, it kind of puts on a light bulb and you're
like, okay, yeah, I do need to step up my game,
you know? Yeah, well, your mouth is the starting
point. It's a starting point of your digestive
system. You put everything in your mouth, anything
you drink, all your foods, your vitamins, medications.
Like, it really is crazy if you take a second
and think about it, you know? Yeah. So, okay.
Let's talk gut. You have this connection between
your oral and your gut, and it's called the oral
-gut axis. If it comes imbalanced, right, your
oral microbiome can lead to what's called gut
dysbiosis. And that's just a fancy word for your
bacterial gut imbalance, which leads to digestive
and inflammatory disorders. Okay. Yeah. So digestion,
your poor oral health can lead to a decrease
in the appropriate amount of chewing. Cause say
your teeth hurt, you're not going to chew it
or, you know, emaciate it or break it down as
much as you would or you could. It will also
decrease the saliva production. And saliva is
so important because it contains these enzymes
and these antibacterial properties which are
so essential for both your oral and your gut
health. So without the appropriate amount of
saliva, this in turn really screws up your digestion.
and your nutrient absorption. So you could be
eating really healthy foods, all these things,
but if you're not producing the right amount
of saliva, then you're not really absorbing the
amount of nutrients that you possibly could,
right? That's crazy. Yeah, it's pretty wild once,
I mean, it's just wild. Your body is so insane.
So along with digestion, the healthy microbiome
helps with the immune system. So 70 to 80 % of
your immune system is from your gut. Did you
know that? I did. Pretty wild. It is pretty wild.
But it is wild. It is low. It's pretty cool.
I don't know where I thought it was, but... Yeah.
It's like that saying, you are what you eat,
right? I mean, everything is connected to your
stomach. So having this healthy microbiome...
Basically trains your immune system right to
decipher between the good and bad like invaders
or substances This will now prevent any autoimmune
issues or chronic inflammation Say you have gums
that are inflamed Now you're ingesting that and
that can lead to things like leaky gut syndrome
inflammation You know the list goes on and on
and on another thing that is affected by your
your gut Is your hormone regulation. So we're
talking estrogen, thyroid, among many others.
Okay, but it's just, it's a big role in your
hormone regulation. Again, with the inflammation,
it's a prevention to heart disease, cancer, arthritis,
right? Cause inflammation is like, it just causes
all this, this junk in your body kind of circulate.
And yeah, it's just gross. So when you have this
strong intestinal barrier, it pushes away all
that shit, that harmful microbes. So your risks
for infection go down. Your risks for food sensitivities
go down. And, you know, overall, you just feel
better and you move better. And another thing
that helps is now your mind. You're thinking
better because along with the oral gut access,
we have what is called the gut brain access,
which is another connection. So, I mean, we've
said it in previous episodes, everything is connected,
right? So when you have this healthy gut microbiome,
you have these healthy productions of these neurotransmitters
that are the serotonin dopamine GABA. This will
in turn influence your mood, anxiety, cognitive
function. So when we sat and really thought about
the real connection between our mouth, to our
stomach, to our brain, it goes back to childhood
as, brush your teeth, you know, the importance
of oral health. Well, I think we need to teach
a little bit differently in schools, the real
connection between the three. You know because
I I never really understood the full connection
until you know pretty recently But it makes sense
when you think about how everything is digested
broken down Distributed it's it all starts with
what you put in your mouth and how you take care
of your mouth, right? Yeah, absolutely. So what
about You know, like I said, there's good and
bad bacteria in your mouth. Okay You can't fight
all the bad ones all the time. Otherwise you'd
be like stuck in the bathroom brushing your teeth
all day long. So you're going to end up having
a little bit in your gut. But there's also other
ways to kind of help that gut stay healthy. So
what are some foods that help with like retaining
a healthy gut? Yeah, so I'm sure a lot of us
are already doing some of these things just because
they are healthy foods. But foods for healthy
gut would be fermented. I feel like that's talked
about so much right now. Fermented foods, having
a little bit of that on your plate every day.
And fermented foods give you probiotics. So we're
talking kimchi, sauerkraut, kombucha, kefir,
miso, certain yogurts, and then high fiber foods,
which would give you the prebiotics. That would
be bananas, onions, leeks, garlic, asparagus,
oats, flax seeds, and then polyphenols. Green
tea, berries, cacao, cloves, and apples. And
then crunchy fruits and vegetables. So carrots,
apples again, celery, pears, broccoli, and then
leafy greens and antioxidant foods. Spinach,
kale, turmeric, ginger. So there's some herbs
and stuff in there as well. But I was just thinking
when you were saying, you know, what's that saying?
Like, what about, you know, an apple a day keeps
the doctor away? Yeah, right when I eat an apple
I my teeth feel so clean. Yeah, do you notice
that? Yeah, like that's yeah, like it's like
really brushing, you know, yeah, like eating
that crunch Yeah, that's that's a good point.
Yeah an apple a day keeps the doctor away Yeah,
no, I mean and again, these are a lot of healthy
things I'm sure we're all incorporating a lot
of that. So we're already doing something good
and not even Maybe realizing the full potential
of it Yeah, I mean along with that list of foods
too like you know say you're not into fermented
foods right my husband actually started taking
this pre and probiotic called seed and i did
this like two week gut reset and it it's a two
week process um but he takes it daily i personally
am obsessed with kombucha and you know the things
like that so i don't really feel like i need
to add in any additional pre or probiotics but
the two week kind of reset was a good thing to
kind of add into my system just to see you know
i was just kind of experimenting a little bit
um but he swears by it he takes the pre and pro
it's all in one pill so you're just taking this
because he's not really into kombucha and like
these other things so that's that's a good way
for him to get it in But along with the foods,
you want to really lower your ultra processed
foods that you're consuming and your really high
sugar foods because these promote inflammation,
right? And that's harmful for your bacterial
growth. Like it causes the bad bacteria to kind
of multiply and just like a fermenting ground
for that. Also, you had said stay hydrated, right?
Yeah. digestion, being hydrated, which I have
also increased my intake. You have upped it,
and I am proud. I've done really good. Good girl.
But it really helps just promote a healthy mucosal
lining in your gut. And like we were saying with
the natural probiotics, all these things, really
try and stay away from unnecessary antibiotics.
I've seen it a million times in the ER. People
come looking for antibiotics for the the most
minor things. You don't need to fill your body
with antibiotics all the time. Not every single
thing needs an antibiotic. Your body can naturally
fight these things if you just let it ride it
out, you know? But if for some reason you do
need to take an antibiotic, there's no other
way around it, really, really add in a probiotic
during the course and after. Yeah, because the
antibiotic kills both the good and bad. It can't
tell the difference. Yeah, so it just destroys
everything and now you're like five steps behind,
you know, which could like we like we just said
it could in turn now cause anxiety or depression
or all these things because now you're you're
not You know kind of producing those awesome
chemicals like the serotonin, the dopamine, the
GABA, because everything is destroyed. So really
keep that in mind. If you're taking an antibiotic,
you got to pair it with a probiotic to keep it
kind of in balance. Good advice. Yeah. So I mean,
that's just like a wild connection, right? It
is. And I think the oil pulling, it just feels
very clean. And so it's just a good start to
know that you're doing So many good things by
doing that. Your mouth is clean, your gut is
clean, and hopefully your mind is clean. Yeah.
Got the good vibes everywhere. Yep. Good gut,
good vibes. I love it. Well, and with the oil
pulling too, like just to recap, you are moisturizing
the mouth, you are freshening your breath, you
are helping your gums, like. Yeah. possibly even
whiten your teeth. Some people claim they feel
like their teeth have gotten whiter from the
pulling. I mean, it's just so beneficial all
over. Yeah, but we hope that this made you think
a little bit about how the body is all connected.
Yep. Mind, body, spirit. Yeah. Now it's mouth,
gut, brain. I like it. I like it. So our quote
today is by Dr. Michael Royzen. Hopefully I said
that correct. It says, the mouth is the gateway
to the body. And that it is. Yeah, it is for
sure. So hopefully, hopefully you're brave enough
to try the oil pulling. Um, and if not, I totally
get it. It's kind of weird, but really step up
your game with your brushing, your flossing,
all the things to try to implement that, you
know, even just a few things off of the list
to kind of help your gut microbes and it will
improve your sanity little by little. So who
doesn't need that? Right. But that's it for today.
We hope you have a great week and as always,
keep it good.