DIY

Five Reasons You Should Be Oil Pulling (REPOST)

January 11, 2018 — 1 Comment

Photo credit: Organic Lifestyle

I type this long overdue post with a mouth full of fractionated coconut oil and cannot help but chuckle. Coconut oil has had a surge of popularity recently and “oil pulling” is just one of the many ways it can be used in your everyday life. But just what is oil pulling? and why in god’s name am I swishing it back in forth in my mouth?

 

What is Oil Pulling?

A very very long time ago (like ancient) before Colgate, Crest, and Sensodyne, folks used what they found in nature to clean and purify themselves. Oil pulling also known as “kavala” or “gundusha,” is an ancient Ayurvedic dental technique that involves swishing a small amount (less than one tablespoon) of oil in your mouth on an empty stomach for around 15-20 minutes. This action will draw out toxins in your body, improve oral health, and whiten your teeth naturally. The objective is to improve oral health but also to improve your overall health. This all sounds kinda crazy and to good to be true right?

Well I thought so as well. That is until I made it a vow to detox my life and rid myself of man made chemical laden health and beauty products and learn how to use natural substances found in the earth for my every day beauty routines. If you didn’t know, lotions, soaps, toothpaste, shampoo, cleaning sprays and the like are slowly killing us. I started with cleaning products and have now moved on to toothpaste, soaps, deodorant, and now mouth wash.

Why Use Coconut Oil?

When it comes to oil pulling, sesame seed, olive, and coconut work best. Coconut oil is anti-fungal, antibacterial, antiviral and anti-inflammatory. It has a world of uses in baking, cleaning, moisturizing, cleaning and whitening your teeth. It can also be used a a carrier oil when using essential oils (more on this in a future post). The oil pulls out toxins in your mouth and breaks up hard to clean plague build up.

Does Oil Pulling Work?

I was skeptical at first and of course had to try it out for myself. I use fractionated coconut oil (remains liquid) but organic pressed or unpressed would work just as well. I’ve been pulling for a little over two months now and can’t believe I am just now coming onto this practice. My teeth look and feel significantly cleaner. My dry mouth has decreased and my breath overall remains much fresher than before I began pulling.

Why You Should Oil Pull?

  1. It’s Good for your Oral Health. I’ve already mentioned that coconut oil is a natural antibacterial substance that can be used to rid the body of toxins. Using high quality organic coconut oil is one of the best natural ways to do this.
  2. Balances the PH of your mouth. Dental experts agree that the mouth is the window into the body. Poor health can lead to all sorts of chronic illnesses; many of which can be attributed to off balance acidity levels in the body. Oil pulling helps with that.
  3. Whitens your teeth. A natural, safer, and healthier alternative to expensive teeth whitening treatments, A few weeks of pulling leads to a noticeably whiter smile
  4. Inexpensive. Seriously. Even though a high quality coconut oil may initialy set you back $12-18 dollars using coconut oil in your own toothpaste and to oil pull will save you bundles over time. You barely need a tablespoon for it to work its magic in your mouth.
  5. You Have Nothing to Lose. It’s funny that so many people snark and snicker at using natural products and alternative their health/beauty care but think nothing of buying and using a new over the counter bath and body product that is made in someone’s lab. Oil pulling certainly does not hurt and trying it even once will not kill you. If taste is your concern mix it will a little coconut, orange, or even lemon oil. Don’t knock it until your try it.

How to Oil Pull

Natural health and beauty blogger Fran of Hey Fran Hey demonstrates oil pulling and many many other natural beauty treatments in the Youtube tutorial below.

To learn more about oil pulling and even more A+mazing uses for coconut oil, click one of the links below.

Oil Pulling for Oral Health by Wellness Mama

35 Things You Could Do with Coconut Oil by Organic Lifestyle Magazine

What Is Oil Pulling by Health Ambition

 

DIY Organic Coconut Peppermint Toothpaste (REPOST)

January 5, 2018 — Leave a comment

In my quest to detox my life in as many ways as I can (read more here), re-sharing this simple DIY Organic Coconut Peppermint Toothpaste recipe. With only three ingredients it doesn’t get more simple than this. I already love it 100x more than the Crest I’m used to buying. The benefits of coconut oil are abundant. It’s definitely one of those things that I wish I would have done a while ago and I can’t believe I ever used anything else. Simple. Cheaper. Better. Natural.

DIY Coconut Peppermint Toothpaste

  • 1/4 cup organic coconut oil measured then melted
  • 2-3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 10 drops peppermint essential oil
  • 1 drop stevia (optional)
  • Melt coconut oil, add soda and peppermint oil drops. Mix to combine. Allow to set.

Original Post

 

Introducing The Gluten Free Chef’s Natural Product Challenge | Pure Haven Essentials 

September 5, 2017 — Leave a comment

I am pleased to announce the Pure Haven Essential Challenge

I was introduced to Pure Haven Essentials through Rochester, NY based Pure Haven Essentials Consultant Heidi Jarvis. Heidi was a vendor at The 2016 Rochester Makers Market at 540WMain Learning Academy (our headquarters) as well as this year’s Rochester Gluten Free Health & Wellness Expo. The Makers Market is all about highlighting local artists, makers, and health and wellness professionals and Heidi and I connected immediately over a shared love of natural and organic home, health, bath and body care.

What is Pure Haven Essentials

What I immediately liked about Pure Haven is their dedication to creating products that are 100% toxin free. The company’s mission is to educate consumers about pure & safe, alternative choices that are easy to add to your daily routine. For the last two years, I’ve been on a quest to remove toxins from my everyday life and begin to make my own all- natural deodorant and toothpaste as well as using purely natural organic essential oils and shea butter based moisturizes. This stems from the knowledge that living gluten free is about more than just what we eat but also what we use on our bodies. The skin is our largest organ and what we put on it is just as important to our overall well-being as what we eat.

Of course, making products from scratch takes a certain level of time and dedication that I do not always have as a business owner. So it is important to have commercial products that are just as trustworthy what I make for myself in my kitchen from scratch.

What is the Pure Haven Challenge

Heidi recently gifted me a box full of  Pure Haven Essentials products and in my excitement I wanted to create a challenge where I tasked myself to use the project line for two weeks at home and at 540WMain and document my honest thoughts and opinions here on the blog. Before I can give my full endorsement of any product line I have to know the products inside and out and genuinely use them in my personal life. This challenge is a perfect way to do that.

What Products Will I be Using?

My gift set includes the following Pure Haven Products:

  1. Glass Cleaner
  2. Moisturizing Hand Soap
  3. Aloe Vera Shea Butter
  4. Shave Gel: Aloe Vera
  5. Surface Cleaner
  6. Lemon Peel Dish Soap

I am beyond excited to get cleaning with Pure Haven and share my experiences with you all two weeks from today.

Happy cleaning 🙂

P.S I was not financially compensated for this post or for the two week challenge. I received products for review purposes. The opinions are completely my own based on my personal experience with the products.

DIY Organic Shea Butter Eucalyptus Deodorant

June 28, 2016 — 5 Comments

My odyssey into the land of DIY all natural lifestyle products with this super effective shea butter based deodorant that came together by accident. After months of using my simple DIY Organic Coconut Peppermint Deodorant I finally ran out of it and the ingredients to make more. For the past few weeks I’ve been  using a dab of shea butter with baking soda. After a few weeks of using this combination and being clean and fresh as ever, I finally thought to create a formal recipe. This deodorant combines the soothing scent of peppermint oil and the cleaning properties of Eucalyptus oil.. Simple. Cheaper. Better. Natural.

 

DIY Organic Shea Butter Eucalyptus Natural Deodorant

Ingredients

Preparation

  • Combine all ingredients in one mason jar
  • Stir mix until well combined
  • Using a silicone spatula or spoon, scoop deodorant paste into clear jar
  • . Allow to set then cover

P.S Silly me forgot to share the recipe for my DIY Organic Coconut Peppermint Deodorant. Be on the look out for it later in the week. 🙂 

Photo credit (cover): Mary Makes Good 

DIY Coconut Tea Tree Oil Deodorant

January 9, 2016 — 2 Comments

My journey to organic DIY personal care products by the end of 2016 continues with this DIY Organic Coconut Tea Tree Oil Deodorant. I’ve always wanted to try making my own deodorant but have been leery about the results. It wasn’t until a co-worker gave her seal of approval that I decided to give it ago. Per usual, her suggested recipe not only works but is so awesome I wish I had switched a long time ago. Simple. Cheaper. Better. Natural wins again.

DIY Coconut Tea Tree Oil Deodorant

  • 1/4 cup organic coconut oil measured then melted
  • 3 tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • 3-4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 10 drops essential tea tree oil
  • Melt coconut oil, add soda, arrowroot powder, and  tea tree oil drops. Mix until thick but pourable paste forms. You make add more or less arrowroot depending on how firm you want your deodorant once it sets. I like mine on the firmer side. Pour mixture into an empty prescription pill bottle. Allow to set before using.