Home Remedies For Tooth Infection Or Toothaches
It’s midnight – your head is pounding; your tooth is throbbing – you would give almost anything for some kind of effective home remedies for tooth infection or toothaches.
OK – it didn’t really take you by surprise:
You felt a little discomfort, or maybe a little tenderness; you’ve had “call the dentist” on your list of things to do for a couple of days, you just hadn’t quite had the time.
And now, it’s the middle of the night. Your tooth is throbbing, and you’ve got nothing but time on your hands to wish you had made that call. You need some kind of effective home remedies for tooth infection – right now!
Well, we’re not going to say that you’re in luck – but thanks to our friends at WebMD, you may be in for a little relief. Relief that will help you get through the night until you can make that phone call to the caring staff here at Dentist Brandon MS.
Here are a few home remedies for tooth infection or toothache.
Some of these are traditional, some are based upon hard science, some may be just “old wives tales”. However, all of them are reported to offer some measure of relief when professional dental help is a few hours away.
Home Remedies for Tooth Infection and Toothache
Let’s start with the obvious Over-The-Counter (OTC) products that you can get at most stores (including the 24-hour kind, since it’s midnight after all). Then, we’ll work our way down to the uh, more questionable remedies:
OTC Pain Relievers
Acetaminophen is the preferred choice for kids, according to many dentists and doctors.
For adults – take your pick – many people prefer ibuprofen (Advil) or naproxen (Aleve), they help to dull the pain and offer some inflammation relief too. Plain old aspirin is still the choice for a lot of people, like me. One word of caution about aspirin though – just swallow it. Some folk remedies suggest putting directly on the tooth. That doesn’t work, and aspirin can be a bit caustic to the gums too.
OTC Anesthetics
These come in gels and liquids that you put directly on the troublesome tooth. Most of these contain benzocaine which is an effective – if short lived – numbing agent. These are meant strictly for short term use, so even they work well for you; you need to make that call to Dentist Brandon MS first thing in the morning to get this problem dealt with properly.
Ice
Yep – people have been using ice to treat pain and swelling for as long as there has been ice, pain and swelling. Grab an ice pack or make a cold compress. Wrap ice cubes in a wash cloth and hold that against the affected area. Be sure to remove it now and again to keep from causing any skin damage or discomfort from another source. But here’s something else to do with ice: Target the hand on the same side of your body as the tooth pain. Rub some ice along the area between your thumb and forefinger for 8 or 10 minutes until the area starts to get numb. It will numb your tooth pain too. Why? Researchers think it somehow blocks pain signals being sent to the brain.
Clove Oil
Before there were OTC anesthetics, there was clove oil.
Rub some directly on the affected tooth, or soak a cotton ball in the oil and put it against the tooth. Many people say that clove oil is as effective as benzocaine.
Salt Water Rinse
Mix a teaspoon or two of table salt into a glass (8 ounces) of warm water. Swish it around in your mouth for a few minutes and then spit it out. Do not swallow the salt water! Repeat the process once or twice per hour – it reportedly has a soothing effect on the pain.
Garlic
Some home remedies maintain that crushing some fresh garlic and putting it on the tooth can help deaden the pain. It’s not really clear if it actually works, but hey; it’s midnight and you’ve got a toothache – anything is worth a try!
Hopefully you will never be in a situation where you have to tough it out for a few hours before you can get in here to Dentist Brandon MS for professional care and relief. But you might want to keep one or two of the items above in your medicine cabinet – or your kitchen cabinet – just in case.
Home Remedies For Tooth Infection and Toothache – The Reality:
The truth is, we’ll try anything that might remotely offer some relief when a tooth is throbbing.
The best way to avoid that situation is to practice good oral hygiene. Also be sure to see us for regular checkups and cleanings.
But just in case – be sure to keep out number handy too: 601-759-4366!
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