• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Learn how to prevent & reverse tooth decay, gum disease, and more.
  • Shop

    Natural Products

    • Most Popular
    • All Products
    • Subscriptions

    Shop By Concern

    • Tooth Decay
    • Gum Disease
    • Bleeding Gums
    • Natural Teeth Whitening
    • Bad Breath
  • Learn

    Get Help With...

    • Tooth Decay
    • Gum Disease
    • Bad Breath
    • Tooth Abscess
    • Canker Sores
    • Receding Gums
    • Periodontal Disease

    Free Resources

    • Blog
    • Video Tutorials
    • eBooks
    • Free Downloads
    • Expert Interviews
    • Meridian Tooth Chart
OraWellness.com
  • Blog
  • About
    • Our Story
    • Testimonials
    • FAQ
    • Contact
  • Account
    • Customer Login
    • Wholesale Login
  • 0
OraWellness.com 0
  • Blog
  • About
    • Our Story
    • Testimonials
    • FAQ
    • Contact
  • Account
    • Customer Login
    • Wholesale Login
  • Shop
    • Most Popular
    • All Products
    • Shop by Concern
      • Tooth Decay
      • Gum Disease
      • Bleeding Gums
      • Natural Teeth Whitening
      • Bad Breath
  • Learn
    • Get Help With...
      • Tooth Decay
      • Gum Disease
      • Bad Breath
      • Tooth Abscess
      • Canker Sores
      • Receding Gums
      • Periodontal Disease
    • Free Resources
      • Blog
      • Video Tutorials
      • eBooks
      • Free Downloads
      • Expert Interviews
      • Meridian Tooth Chart

Essential oils – Are essential oils safe to use in the mouth?

Recently, there’s been a lot of online discussion about whether or not essential oils are safe to be used in the mouth.

And for good reason.

If the oral microbiome gets imbalanced, the health of the whole body can be compromised.

The primary concern seems to center around whether or not using essential oils in the mouth can damage the oral microbiome, and some broad statements that have been made might run the risk of misleading people who could actually benefit from essential oil-based product solutions.

And while we’ve addressed questions like this in the FAQs “Are essential oils bad for the oral microbiome?” and “Does the HealThy Mouth Blend damage the ‘good bugs’ in my mouth?”, we thought it may help you if we circled on this specific question again.

Our stance…

Ok, so here’s an overview of our stance: we believe that properly diluted essential oil-based products (like our HealThy Mouth Blend) do not harm and actually help balance the oral microbiome.  And, as you’ll see, we base our stance on scientific literature rather than what’s trending.

Of course, we’re biased.  We provide products that contain certified organic essential oils.  But beyond our bias lies plenty of research explaining and validating why we’ve included essential oils in our products.

So, in an attempt to raise the bar of understanding on this subject, let’s take a deep dive into what the literature really says regarding the safety of essential oils in the mouth, and specifically whether essential oil-based oral health products harm the ‘good bugs’ in our mouth.

From there, rather than adopt our (or any other expert’s) opinions as your own, you’ll be empowered to decide for yourself whether or not essential oil-based oral health products are a good fit for your family.

Full transparency

As you know, we aren’t dentists or medical professionals.

However, we do have a passion for researching both recently published and ‘more seasoned’ dental literature, and we’ve been doing so for nearly 30 years.  Susan and I have a background in the Chinese longevity arts and we’ve always shared a love of both learning and holistic living. If you’d like to check out how we began our journey into researching oral health, feel free to check out Susan’s story.

In addition to ‘geeking out’ on research, we love sharing information with you.

Clinical practice in medicine (and dentistry) tends to be at least 10 years behind the research.  So, our hope is that by continuing to dig through the scientific literature and by sharing the information we find with you, we can help you stay on the leading edge on your journey toward optimal oral health.

Our simple research strategy

One of our main research strategies when digging into any subject is to find who is providing the most consistent, evidence-based research and learn from them.

Specific to the discussion of the field of the oral microbiome, we find one person to have a highly researched and unbiased view. So, our stance and much of this article will draw from the work of Dr. Phillip D Marsh, professor of oral microbiology at the University of Leeds in the UK and author of the book, Oral Microbiology. (While an excellent read for geeks like us, be forewarned, it’s a post graduate textbook. )

Understanding symbiosis and dysbiosis

Let’s start by laying down some foundations.

In the spirit of clarity, we use the terms ‘oral flora’ and ‘oral microbiome’ interchangeably.  And we call the ‘residents’ in the oral microbiome community ‘microbes’ ‘probiotic’ species or ‘thug bugs’.

Evidence continues to mount that suggests that there’s a symbiotic relationship between us (the host) and the resident microbes in the mouth.  In a healthy state of symbiotic balance, we support the microbes and the microbes support us.

However, at times, this health-giving relationship between the host (us) and our oral flora can become disrupted and imbalanced.  This state of imbalance is called dysbiosis.

Rather than the win/win, ‘you help me/I help you’ scenario that occurs in healthy symbiotic environments, in an imbalanced mouth, certain species of microbes start to overrun the mouth and actively seek to undermine our health, creating a ‘win’ for the microbes and a ‘lose’ for our health.

These microbes are classified as ‘pathogenic’, meaning they can cause disease.

Thug bugs…

At OraWellness, we tend to refer to pathogenic microbes as ’thug bugs’ because while they’re not truly ‘bad’, disease nearly always follows when thug bugs increase their populations.

And unfortunately, research has shown that various species of thug bugs actively seek to team up with other species of thug bugs. Think of it as a kind of ‘microbial Mafia’ where the kingpin bugs recruit others to help them do their dirty work.

(As an interesting side note, if you’re curious to understand another way how our HealThy Mouth Blend helps, read about how our blend disrupts the communications between different thug bugs working together, called ‘quorum sensing’ in this article, “What’s in the HealThy Mouth Blend and why is it so effective?“)

So the path to greater oral health as we see it is to:

  1. optimize the environment that fosters the health-supporting species of oral microbes and
  2. prevent the thug bugs from gaining the upper hand.

Science refers to this path as the ‘ecological plaque hypothesis’.

Understanding the ecological plaque hypothesis

The litmus test we use to determine if an expert really knows what they are talking about is whether they ever admit that there are things they don’t know.

Notice that the term we’re going to discuss is the ‘ecological plaque hypothesis’.

In other words, our group understanding of how to navigate the path to optimal oral health is a hypothesis, a working model.

We (all) don’t know everything there is to know on the subject.

We use the information at hand to build a model that provides us with consistent results. Meanwhile, we continue to seek more information to improve that model, even if we may wind up challenging or disproving original aspects of it.  This is the cycle of continual improvement, which ultimately leads us to better and better models.

The ‘local/global’ principle…

Ok, so getting to the hypothesis: if you’ve been following our blog entries and videos, you probably already understand the ecological plaque hypothesis.  So far, our best article on this has been ‘How to balance your oral flora‘.

It’s what we talk about all the time: essentially, to optimize oral health, we must support both the ‘local’, or ‘in the mouth’, environment AND we must also provide ‘global’, or ‘whole body’, immune support.  And just to make sure we’re all on the same page here, the global support is primary in the long term.

We discuss this ‘local/global’ principle more deeply in the article, “4 Steps to Help Your Kids Live a Cavity Free Life”

However, local support is important, too. According to Dr. Marsh, the ecological plaque hypothesis states, “…a substantial change in local environmental conditions can alter the competitiveness of plaque bacteria leading to the enrichment of organisms most suited to the new environment.”

In other words, we must support a shift in the terrain to make long-term changes to our oral health.

Regarding tooth decay, helpful steps like reducing sugar and avoiding acidic foods and drinks come from the ecological plaque hypothesis.  And for those of you who are more concerned about gum disease, strategies like habitually disrupting the thug bugs in gum pockets and increasing oxygen in gum pockets are born from this same hypothesis.

It’s all about keeping plaque thin

Like we’ve shared in other articles and video tutorials, a major part of optimizing our oral health is being a ‘good conductor’ of the symphony of microbes in the mouth.

One major strategy of being a good conductor is to keep plaque biofilms thin.

Not surprising, this strategy is a big part of the ecological plaque hypothesis because as plaque thickens, the environment in the plaque changes (it becomes less oxygen-rich), and thug bugs proliferate more easily in that low-oxygen environment.

Depending on their ingredients, some essential oil-based oral health products (like our HealThy Mouth Blend) can help prevent this from occurring.

For example, manuka oil is particularly effective at helping to achieve adhesion inhibition.  In other words, manuka oil makes it more difficult for thug bugs and the plaque that they create to stick to the teeth and gums, which helps prevent plaque biofilms from thickening.

And, as we state in, “Can some plaques actually help our teeth stay healthy?“, essential oils can play an important role in penetrating even thick biofilms to help establish thinner (aka healthier) plaque on our teeth.  Adhesion inhibition is part of mechanical plaque control, which means it plays a big part in being a good conductor of the symphony in your mouth.

What role do essential oils play in the ecological plaque hypothesis?

A big part of Dr. Marsh’s hypothesis is called, ‘control without killing’.

This concept of ‘control without killing’ is critically important to understand.

What we’re looking to do is use plant botanicals and evidence-based hygiene techniques (like Bass brushing and conscious flossing) to prevent plaque from thickening and provide an environment in which we discourage the thug bugs without disturbing the probiotic communities.

But since some essential oils have antimicrobial properties, wouldn’t the products that contain them create huge imbalances in our oral microbiome?

Not necessarily.

In fact, quite the opposite according to research.

“Long-term use of an EO [essential oil] mouthwash is microbiologically safe, with no changes observed in the bacterial composition of supragingival plaque,
and no evidence of antimicrobial resistance.
”
Dr PD Marsh, author of Oral Microbiology

One study found that, “Long-term use of an EO [essential oil] mouthwash is microbiologically safe, with no changes observed in the bacterial composition of supragingival plaque, and no evidence of antimicrobial resistance.”

Another study found that, “Successful antimicrobial agents are able to meet the apparently contradictory requirements of maintaining the oral biofilm at levels compatible with oral health but without disrupting the natural and beneficial properties of the resident oral microflora.”

And what about Dr. Marsh?

He found that, “Antimicrobial agents in oral care products may have a more selective mode of action in which they mainly inhibit the growth and metabolism of organisms implicated in disease while leaving those associated with oral health relatively unaffected.” [Marsh, 2012]

Control without killing continued…

How is it possible to disrupt disease-causing microbes while leaving the health-supporting ones intact?

In Marsh’s own words,

“A delicate balance is needed, however, to control the oral microbiota at levels compatible with health, without killing beneficial bacteria and losing the key benefits delivered by these resident microbes. These antimicrobial agents may achieve this by virtue of their recommended twice daily topical use, which results in pharmacokinetic profiles indicating that they are retained in the mouth for relatively long periods at sub-lethal levels. At these concentrations they are still able to inhibit bacterial traits implicated in disease (e.g. sugar transport/acid production; protease activity) and retard growth without eliminating beneficial species.”

This is why it’s so important to have the right balance and dilution of plant botanicals.

We explore this as well as the specifics on why our HealThy Mouth Blend is so effective in this article.  If the formula is too concentrated, it can damage the microbial balance in the mouth.  If it’s not strong enough, we won’t benefit from the supportive qualities these plant botanicals offer us.

The balance needs to be just right, and when it is, it can help us to be a good conductor by encouraging the beneficial microbes and overthrowing the efforts of the thug bugs that are trying to build their populations.

Supportive strategies…

Another component of using products like our HealThy Mouth Blend is being able to place the supportive compounds where they are needed most.

Using the Bass Brushing Technique with the HealThy Mouth Blend helps us to do just that.

The rounded bristle tips of the Bass toothbrush along with the unique brushing technique help the organic essential oils to get into the gum pockets, which is where the thug bugs associated with gum disease thrive.  The same goes for other strategies like conscious flossing.

These kinds of strategies are why we get so many testimonials from happy customers. And we especially love the ‘after the dentist’ testimonials, because professional feedback can really help confirm that we’re on the right track with our efforts.

Final thoughts

Let’s close with one more quote from Dr. Marsh regarding using essential oils for oral health:

“Although these agents are often described as having a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity, it has been argued that, under the conditions of use in the mouth, they may also function effectively at sub-lethal concentrations by interfering with bacterial traits associated with disease. This type of ‘controlled’ antimicrobial approach would maintain the beneficial activities that the host derives from the presence and metabolism of the resident oral microbiome, while reducing the activity of the microbial factors (e.g. acid production; proteolysis) that drive the changes in the balance in the biofilm that lead to dysbiosis (control without killing).”

We hope you’ve gleaned some helpful information from our research-based contribution to the discussion about using essential oil-based products in the mouth.

We encourage each of us to continue to question the stories that we’re told and challenge our existing models so we can keep growing and improving along our path.

What about you–what has been your experience using products like our HealThy Mouth Blend?
Have you found benefit from them?
Have you found it to be a positive or negative experience?

Please share in the comments below so we can all continue to learn from our group experience.

Helpful, Related Resources:

Articles

“Are essential oils bad for the oral microbiome?” [FAQ]
“Does the HealThy Mouth Blend damage the ‘good bugs’ in my mouth?” [FAQ]
What’s in the HealThy Mouth Blend and why is it so effective? [article]
How to balance your oral flora [article]
4 steps to help your kids live a cavity-free life [article]
OraWellness HealThy Mouth Blend [[product solution]]
Can some plaques actually help our teeth stay healthy? [article]

Video tutorials

How to brush your teeth to stop tooth decay [video tutorial]
How to brush your teeth to reduce gum disease [video tutorial]
How to floss and NOT damage your gums [video tutorial]

SOURCES:

Oral Microbiology, Marsh, PD [amazon link]
Evidence-based control of plaque and gingivitis – Pubmed
Ecological Approaches to Oral Biofilms – Control without Killing 2015, Marsh, PD
Penetrating the plaque biofilm – essential oils [Journal of Clinical Periodontology 2003]

Categories

Microbiome, Toxin Free Oral Care

Tags

Will And Susan

Will and Susan are the founders of OraWellness and are passionate about health, wellness and positive living.

"We are experienced dental health crusaders and holistic oral health product innovators who know first hand the power of nature to heal in miraculous ways."

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comments

  1. Katie Duncan says

    July 18, 2019

    Thank you for sharing this information. I’ve been quite impressed by the effectiveness of the essential oil-based products.

    Reply
  2. Abhinav Singh says

    January 30, 2019

    Using essential oils in a diffuser is generally safe and there aren’t as many limits.

    Reply
  3. Suzanne says

    January 20, 2019

    Thanks for the info and your work
    Just wanted to share that I was reading an article by John doullard at lifespa.com about tulsi being known for disrupting biofilm

    Thanks again

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

HealThy Mouth Blend

  • Helps restore gums to health
  • Cures bad breath
  • Made with 100% certified organic ingredients
  • Fluoride free
  • No artificial anything

Balance your oral flora today

Learn More

My daughter, Stacy, has had excellent results with your product. She uses it regularly and is a returning customer.

Our dentist is very impressed with the progress Stacy has made with her gums greatly improving and great checkups. The dentist went online, checked out your product, and ordered it for her daughter.

Cindy W (photo of Stacy) from Michigan

I love the healthy mouth blend! So convenient all-in-one product, and natural too. An easy small change to make with a big health impact… Thanks so much!

Zia T from New Zealand

At a recent dental appointment, my hygienist said I had the healthiest gums she had ever seen!

Since I had never heard that from her before, I’m confident that using OraWellness for the past 2 years has helped me achieve my healthiest gums! 🙂

Sam S from Colorado

Once you begin using this product you won’t want to ever use anything else!

For the first time in years there is no inflammation or soreness in my mouth.

Best investment ever!

Michelle C from Colorado

The Healthy Mouth Blend has removed tough stains from the surface of my teeth and stopped my gums from bleeding.

OraWellness is a prime example of a company that shows through their actions that they truly care about their customers.

Andre E from Pennsylvania

I have three bridges in my mouth due to poor oral health as a child. Now at 64 my dentist noticed that the teeth holding the bridges were starting to move.   I was sent to a periodontist to have my teeth planed, at the cost of $9000.00.  I found OraWellness then and have been using their products for a year now.

Since using the HealThy Mouth Blend my teeth need minimal cleaning at the dentist.  You have saved me from losing my teeth.  Thank you!

Beverly C from Washington

Nothing comes between my Orawellness Healthy Mouth Blend and brush every morning and night 🙂

Ever since I started using the Healthy Mouth Blend I have no more tooth sensitivity that I was getting from the stuff full of chemicals.  I love it – fresh breath and no preservatives or ingredients that you cannot pronounce.  Great job!!

Heidi F from Pennsylvania

I was dealing with sore gums, loose teeth, discoloration and sensitive molars.  I thought my diet was healthy and that my oral care was good but my dental visits showed otherwise. I began incorporating your HealThy Mouth Blend every evening on my floss.  Since then, my gum pockets have gone from 3-4s down to normal, my sensitivity and loose teeth have disappeared, and my teeth feel polished and fresh!

My husband, parents, sister and mother-in-law now use the HealThy Mouth Blend too. Thank you for sharing your high-quality products, experience and research with us!  Orawellness, I am so grateful to have found your site and products!

Jenny D from Austin, TX

I am in my mid-40s and had experienced daily gum bleeding and tooth sensitivity due to gum recession for over half my life.

Using the protocol of OraWellness tooth cleaner, oil pulling, and flossing every day, I no longer suffer from any gum bleeding or tooth sensitivity. In fact, it appears as though my gums have begun to regenerate.

As for the rest of my family, my husband loves the clean-mouth sensation of your product and my 4 year-old loves to brush his teeth with the Bass toothbrush. (See photo 🙂

Thank you OraWellness for your wonderful products and customer service!

Lara T from Portland, Oregon

At 70 years of age, Orawellness has given me a new lease on life, literally!

When I first discovered your company, I suffered from bleeding gums, periodontal disease, four deep pockets, my gums were receding, teeth were loose, and I clenched my jaw during sleep, injuring my cheeks as well as my teeth.

I purchased the HealThy Mouth System to get started. As I used the product, I immediately noticed that the bleeding gums was getting better. Soon, the bleeding stopped completely. I used your OraWellness pocket applicator to treat the stubborn deep pockets I had between my back molars. I had already tried many things to treat them, but with very limited success.  My teeth now feel very firm in my mouth, not loose like before. In fact when I floss now it is hard to get in between the teeth, they are so tight! Fabulous.

Then I noticed, my gums were regrowing, they were no longer receded.

And another thing, something that was totally surprising and unexpected. The pain from my rheumatoid arthritis was better. It became noticeably better right after brushing. If I missed a brushing, I noticed that the pain and discomfort was worse, so who knew! But a wonderful result none the same. And I should add that it continues to improve. What a wonderful blessing for an older person.

Oh, and I forgot to mention it, but it is no less important, I no longer clench and grind my teeth when sleeping!

Thank you so much for your wonderful products, research and teaching tools. I will be eternally grateful.

Laura HB from Arizona

Learn More

Categories

  • Bad Breath
  • Braces
  • Brushing
  • Canker Sores
  • Children's Oral Care
  • Diet/Nutrition
  • Flossing
  • Gum Disease
  • Microbiome
  • Mouth/Body Connection
  • Oral Hygiene
  • Quick Links
  • Remineralization
  • Root Canals
  • Tooth Decay
  • Toxin Free Oral Care
  • Uncategorized
  • Whiter Teeth Naturally
  • Wisdom Teeth

Footer

About

  • Our Story
  • FAQ
  • Returns / Refunds
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy

Shop

  • All Products
  • Store Locator
  • Customer Login
  • Wholesale Login

Connect

Email Us
(808) 892-3274

  • Wholesale Program
  • Affiliate Program
  • Join Our Team
© 2023 OraWellness. All rights reserved.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.