From Amanda's very early writing (1990s to early 2000s), shared as it was originally written.
Tongue cleaning/ A 'new' bad breath cure?
And you thought flossing and brushing were the total answer to dental hygiene... but wait there's more! Our tongues need cleaning too! In fact , it appears that cleaning our tongue may be a great way to avoid bad breath.
About 12 months ago I was listening to an actor speaking about voice control and he mentioned the importance of cleaning our tongues! He then produced this strange but simple looking device that makes 'tongue scraping' easy. He also suggested that we could use the back of a teaspoon.
This information I filed into the mental cabinet for later reference - until last month when I was in New Zealand. While in a chemist shop, I suddenly remembered this news bite and asked for a tongue cleaner. Well, you can imagine the response! After she had made sure I didn't have two heads, she said 'no'.
Then as synchronicity would have it, last week in the mail I received a parcel. Yes, you guessed it folks - a tongue scraper and information about it and new environmentally sound toothbrushes and tooth powder from a company called ESP! (Of course).
No, seriously, ESP stands for Environmentally Sound Products. They are based in Melbourne and seem genuinely committed to being sensitive to our environment. And their Eco Dent range of products include this amazing tongue cleaner and 'tooth powder' that appears to be a very safe, environmentally friendly and sensible alternative to traditional toothpaste.
Not to mention a range of toothbrushes that have disposable heads - designed to minimize plastic waste. Industry sources suggest that 32 million toothbrushes and 54 million toothpaste tubes are discarded each year in Australia alone. That's a lot of non biodegradable plastic waste we could avoid -by reusing toothbrush handles and by using tooth powder rather than toothpaste.
I was fascinated by the information ESP provided. Did you know that tongue cleaning has been standard practice in India and Japan for centuries? And that bacteria grow on the tongue and produce odour emitting 'volatile sulphur compounds' (from clinical papers) which are a leading cause of halitosis - a flash name for bad breath!
The tongue is also a major dumping ground for food debris and plaque which can lead to tooth decay and gum disease. Hey and you thought it was just a boring old piece of muscle useful for swallowing!
Dr Julian Gelier, a dentist and cofounder of the Fresh Breath Clinic in Toronto explains " while it may appear smooth , the tongue is actually etched with a network of fissures and grooves in which bacteria can thrive." Apparently, the thrive under thick layers of plaque. Tongue scraping effectively removes these bacteria which neither tooth brushing or mouth washing alone can remove.
The University of Toronto found that tongue scraping reduced 75% of the nasty smelling sulphur compounds while simple brushing reduces them by 25%. I thought that bad breath was caused by disorders in the stomach - but apparently 80% of bad breath is caused by the 'stuff' stuck on our tongues.
Tongue scraping is recommended twice daily after brushing the teeth. Just scrape the top of the tongue from back to front and rinse with warm water or mouthwash. Or gargle for even better results. It's really important to reach the very back of the upper portion of the tongue as this is where most of the odour causing bacteria live.
Unfortunately, you still have to brush the teeth and floss! Brushing the tongue isn't as effective as scraping because it appears to churn up and redistribute the debris on the tongue and make you gag as you try to reach the very back of the tongue!
I have tried tongue scraping with this unique but simple device, folks and I think it works! And even though you probably won't want to know this - you should see the gunk that comes off the tongue of a person who is really healthy and who eats really well and doesn't routinely have bad breath! (ie me). I haven't noticed I can taste food better yet, although I'm hopeful but I must say, my tongue looks much cleaner!
