Oil pulling

{{Short description|Alternative medical practice}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}} {{Alternative medicine sidebar |fringe}} {{Redirect|Oil pull|the tractor|Rumely Oil Pull}}

'''Oil pulling''' is an alternative medical practice in which an edible oil is swished around the mouth for a period of time and then spat out, similar to mouthwash.<ref name="king">{{cite journal |pmid=29651060|journal=British Dental Journal |volume=224|issue=7|page=470|title=Bad science: Oil pulling|author=King A|date=13 April 2018|doi=10.1038/sj.bdj.2018.281|s2cid=4808148 }}</ref> It originates from Ayurvedic medicine.

Practitioners of oil pulling claim it is capable of improving oral health.<ref name="Butler2014">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/03/20/everyone-is-talking-about-oil-pulling-but-does-this-health-practice-actually-work/ |date=20 March 2014 |title=Everyone is talking about 'oil pulling.' But does this health practice actually work? |last=Butler |first=Bethonia |newspaper=The Washington Post }}</ref> Its promoters claim it works by ''pulling'' out toxins,<ref name=king/> but there is no credible evidence to support this.<ref name=king/><ref name=SBM/><ref name=lipids/><ref name=sr/>

==History== Oil pulling stems from traditional Ayurvedic medicine,<ref name=king/><ref name=Puri_2015>Puri, Nividita (2015) "Holistic Approach of Oil Pulling in the Dental World: a literature review". ''The Dental Assistant'' 20–23</ref><ref name="BronsonGray2014">{{cite web|url=http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/news/20140418/oil-swishing-craze-snake-oil-or-all-purpose-remedy |last=Bronson Gray |first=Barbara |title=Oil-Swishing Craze |date=18 April 2014 |website=WebMD}}</ref><ref name="Cheshire2014">{{cite web |last=Cheshire |first=Sara |date=6 August 2014 |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/06/health/oil-pulling |title=Does oil pulling work? |website=CNN |publisher=Turner Broadcasting System}}</ref> whose practitioners may use sunflower oil, coconut oil, olive oil, or other herbal oils.<ref name=king/><ref name=Mulson2014>{{cite web |url=http://gazette.com/live-well-oil-pulling-draws-fans-skeptics-in-colorado-springs/article/1535792 |title=Live Well: Oil pulling draws fans, skeptics in Colorado Springs |last=Mulson |first=Jennifer |date=19 August 2014 |website=The Gazette |location=Colorado Springs, Colorado |access-date=5 September 2014 |archive-date=23 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823044203/http://gazette.com/live-well-oil-pulling-draws-fans-skeptics-in-colorado-springs/article/1535792 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Criticism== There is no high-quality research on oil pulling,<ref name=king/><ref name="SBM">{{cite web|last1=Novella|first1=Steven|author-link1=Steven Novella|title=Oil Pulling Your Leg|url=https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/oil-pulling-your-leg/|website=Science Based Medicine|access-date=22 April 2017|date=12 March 2014|quote=Oil pulling is a suggestive misnomer, implying that something bad is being pulled from the mouth (toxins and bacteria). What little scientific evidence exists shows that it is probably not as effective as standard mouth wash, and what benefit it has is likely entirely due to the mechanical act of swishing to remove particles and bacteria from teeth and gums ... Oil pulling for general health or any other indication is pure pseudoscience. Detox claims are based on nothing, as are all detox claims. There is no evidence or plausible rationale to recommend oil pulling for any indication other than as a poor substitute for oral care.}}</ref><ref name=sr>{{cite journal | vauthors = Gbinigie O, Onakpoya I, Spencer E, McCall MacBain M, Heneghan C | title = Effect of oil pulling in promoting oro dental hygiene: A systematic review of randomized clinical trials | journal = Complementary Therapies in Medicine | volume = 26 | pages = 47–54 | date = June 2016 | pmid = 27261981 | doi = 10.1016/j.ctim.2016.02.011 | type = Review | quote = To the best of our knowledge this is the first systematic review assessing the effect of oil pulling on oro dental hygiene. The results should be interpreted with caution because of the small number of included studies. Furthermore, the included studies were not adequately powered, and small sample sized studies could lead to misleading results }}</ref> no understanding of a possible mechanism explaining how it would work,<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.4103/2155-8213.122675 |title=Perspectives of oil pulling therapy in dental practice |journal=Dental Hypotheses |volume=4 |issue=4 |pages=131–134 |year=2013 |last1=Lakshmi |first1=T |last2=Rajendran |first2=R |last3=Krishnan |first3=Vidya |doi-access=free }}</ref> and no evidence that it provides any benefit.<ref name=king/><ref name=lipids>{{cite journal | vauthors = Kensche A, Reich M, Kümmerer K, Hannig M, Hannig C | title = Lipids in preventive dentistry | journal = Clinical Oral Investigations | volume = 17 | issue = 3 | pages = 669–685 | date = April 2013 | pmid = 23053698 | doi = 10.1007/s00784-012-0835-9 | s2cid = 30589353 | type = Review }}</ref><ref name=sr/> The American Dental Association agrees that there are no reliable scientific studies supporting the practice of oil pulling for any benefit to oral hygiene or overall wellbeing.<ref name="ADAOilPulling">{{cite web |title=Oil Pulling |url=https://www.mouthhealthy.org/en/az-topics/o/oil-pulling |publisher=American Dental Association}}</ref>

The Canadian Dental Association assessed the practice of oil pulling in 2014 stating: "We sense oil pulling won't do any harm, we're not convinced there are any particular benefits to it."<ref name="CBC News">{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/oil-pulling-ancient-practice-now-a-modern-trend-1.2664794|author=Anna Lazowski|date=5 June 2014|title=Oil pulling: Ancient practice now a modern trend|publisher=CBC News|access-date=10 June 2014}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

==Further reading==  * {{Skeptoid | id=4409 | number= 409| title= Oil Pulling| date= April 8, 2014 | access-date=}}

Category:Alternative detoxification Category:Ayurveda Category:Oral hygiene Category:Naturopathy Category:Pseudoscience