Tongue Scraping

What Is It & Why You Should Try It

Every great detox is incomplete without tongue scraping. This technique is great for your health, allowing you to completely reset your body. This technique is also a relaxing addition to our Detox Holiday here at the Sanctuary Thailand.

What Is Tongue Scraping?

Our mouths are filled with bacteria, this isn’t anything new. While some are good bacteria that are useful to the body, some are not needed. So when doing a detox, how do you ensure you also detox your mouth as well as the rest of your body? While maintaining good oral hygiene is definitely a must, sometimes this is not enough. There are some particles and bacteria which lie below the surface of the tongue so cannot be removed with simple brushing. The most efficient way to tackle these is with tongue scraping. Tongue scraping uses a tool that is slightly rounded, usually made of metal or
plastic.

If you have further interests in tongue monitoring, we have made a short video for self-monitoring about what your tongue is saying.

Main Benefits of Tongue Scraping

As mentioned, your tongue can build up dead cells, bacteria, and debris over time. This has a negative impact on your oral health and can even lead to bad breath. So, what happens when you try tongue scraping? Here are the main benefits:

#1: Remove Bacteria:
According to a 2005 study, doing tongue scraping will prevent your tongue from building up Mutans streptococci and Lactobacilli bacteria. After using this method for 7 days, twice a day, these bacteria, which are responsible for dental decay and bad breath, were reduced.

#2: Improve Your Taste:
Removing excess from your tongue, such as bacteria, frees up your taste buds and therefore improves your sense of taste. If you are a chef or just love food, this is a great way to reconnect with and experience taste on a new level. Post detox it is important to really savor and understand your food, and a heightened sense of taste is crucial in this.

#3: Improve Your Tongue’s Appearance:

Lack of tongue scraping can result in the tongue having a white and coated appearance, which is not normal. This is simply the result of the excess of debris that has accumulated on the surface. Through tongue scraping it will return to its natural appearance, meaning it is much healthier.

#4: Reduce Bad Breath:
As we already mentioned above, tongue scraping is not a replacement for brushing your teeth. Nevertheless, it’s the perfect complement to ensure that you have a good breath through removing any excess bacterial missed by your normal oral care routine.

#5: Improve Your Overall Health:
Teeth have an enormous influence on your overall health. The bacteria that build upon the tongue from neglect can spread to the rest of the mouth and affect the teeth. This can result in long term dental issues from lack of maintenance.

Are There Any Side Effects Of Tongue Scraping?

The only side effect, if we can even call it that, is that when you are tongue scraping, you may stimulate the gag reflex. So, you may feel the need to vomit during the process. This can be easily avoided, however, by not using the scraper too far back on your tongue and therefore not triggering this reflex.