8 Home Remedies for Toothache

If you have a toothache, it’s important to figure out what’s the root cause of your discomfort. From there, you can determine how to best relieve any pain, swelling, or other symptoms. A regular salt water rinse and cold compress application can typically remedy minor irritation, but more serious toothaches may require a dentist’s intervention. Here are our best 8 home remedies for toothache.

If your symptoms persist for more than a day or two, see your dentist. They can provide guidance on how to relieve your symptoms and prevent future pain.

You should also talk to your dentist before using any of the following remedies if you’re pregnant, breastfeeding, or have any medical condition that may be impacted by herbal ingredients. 

The pain caused by teeth gives you a precisely afflictive experience which could eventually make your day worse. Toothache refers to the dental pain; the pain in the tooth or the area around the tooth. Your teeth may be sensitive to pressure, cold, heat or sweets. If you have a toothache, you are likely to experience a sharp, throbbing, constant pain, red, swollen painful gums, fever or headache, or perhaps an unpleasant taste in the mouth. And when you have a toothache, the most important thing would be to identify the reasons which cause the pain. Common causes of toothaches include sinus infection, tooth decay, abscessed or infected tooth, food or debris stuck in your teeth, infected gums or perhaps a tooth fracture. This might continue for 1 or 2 days.

However, if the pain lasts for more than 1 or 2 days, the wisest decision would be to see a dentist as soon as possible before it gets severe. Until you go to see the dentist, it’s best to follow some remedies to relieve the discomfort even though they are temporary. From this article, Remedies for Toothache, we will be discussing 8 home remedies that you can try on to numb the pain.

Keep reading to learn more about home remedies for toothache.

1. Cold Compress

This is the easiest way to relieve the pain caused by a toothache. You can hold a pack of ice covered by a clean and soft towel against the affected area for at least about 12- 20 minutes to get rid of the discomfort caused by the toothache. This reduces the inflammation while interrupting the signals from the injury to the brain helping to numb the pain.

2. Clove Oil

Cloves contain eugenol, a natural numbing agent. Using an eyedropper, squeeze one or two clove oil drops onto a cotton ball and apply it to the painful tooth for short-term relief. Try to keep it away from the tongue or other tissues in the mouth, however, as numbing these areas can be uncomfortable. 

Cloves are a natural remedy for toothache which you can easily find. Cloves contain eugenol, a natural antiseptic. These can be used to numb your pain on teeth and reduce the inflammation it causes. Here, you can either use natural cloves or clove oil to alleviate the pain. 

If you are using the whole clove, first put it near the tooth that hurts and bite and grind. This will release the oil in the clove even though it gives a bitter taste. Make sure you don’t spit it out and instead keep it for at least 5 minutes and then rinse. You can also make a paste after grinding the clove until it gets into powder and mixing it with some coconut oil. After that, you can apply it in the affected area.

You can also use clove oil which you can buy from drug stores easily. First, dilute the clove oil with some drops of olive oil, almond oil and coconut oil and by using a ball cotton wool, put it in the affected area for 5-7minutes before rinsing it.

3. Rinse with Saltwater

For many people, a saltwater rinse is an effective first-line treatment. Saltwater is a natural disinfectant, and it can help loosen food particles and debris that may be stuck in between your teeth. Treating a toothache with salt water can also help reduce inflammation and heal any oral wounds. For this approach, mix 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) of salt into a glass of warm water and use it as a mouthwash. 

This is another easy way to alleviate the pain caused by toothaches. Salt is a natural and effective antiseptic that helps to loosen food particles and debris that may be stuck in between your mouth. Rinsing your mouth with warm (not hot) saltwater helps to relieve the pain to a certain extent. For this, mix 1/ 2 tsp table salt to 8 ounces of water, gargle and spit it out.

Make sure you do not swallow any of the saltwater while you rinse. You can do this daily to keep good oral hygiene. 

4. Hydrogen peroxide rinse

Generally, hydrogen peroxide is used to sterilize wounds and burns to prevent infection. 

Hydrogen Peroxide rinse also helps to relieve the pain and inflammation caused by a toothache. This helps to reduce plaque and heal bleeding gums.

For this, take a 3 percent concentration of diluted hydrogen peroxide and mix two parts of warm (not hot) water with one part of hydrogen peroxide. Then gargle and swish the solution in your mouth for at least 20-25 seconds and spit it out. Make sure to rinse your mouth with water afterward to remove any remaining hydrogen peroxide.

5. Garlic 

Garlic possesses antibiotic characteristics. It can stop bacteria from growing in the mouth and damaging a problematic tooth. Mash a clove of garlic, add a pinch of salt and apply this paste to the tooth. Doing this a couple of times a day will help ease infection in a tooth. If the pain is caused by something else, such as issues with the temporomandibular joint, however, this remedy will not be of much use.

Like clove oil, garlic fights pain in a tooth with its anti-bacterial properties while killing potentially harmful bacteria. To use garlic for toothaches, take one and crush to create a sticky paste and then you can apply it in the affected area. Or else, you can chew a clove of fresh garlic and spit it out after 4-5 minutes. Here, when you crush one, it releases allicin, an oily liquid helping to fight the pain. This takes some time to relieve the pain.

6. Vanilla Extract

Vanilla extract contains alcohol, which helps to numb the pain caused by a toothache. This has been used to treat the pain and discomfort caused by the appearance of teeth in babies due to its antiseptic and pain-relieving properties. 

To use this, first, dab a ball of cotton wool in the vanilla extract and then, apply it directly to your gums for a few minutes (repeat it if required) after some time. You can also use your finger instead of the ball of cotton wool.

7. Onion

Onions have antiseptic and antimicrobial properties. Not only will these properties help ease the pain temporarily, but they can also kill infection-causing germs. Chewing raw onion or pressing a piece to the painful area can help relieve symptoms for a while, though not everyone can handle the intense taste. 

8. Guava Leaves

Fresh guava leaves have anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and analgesic properties, all of which can help relieve pain from a toothache. Chewing the leaves can ease pain, or they can be made into a mouthwash by boiling them with water and salt. Spinach leaves can have a similar effect.

Mentioned above are some remedies for toothache which you can try at home before going to see the dentist. If the pain goes away with the above methods, there’s no need to worry. However, if the pain continues for more than 2 days, consulting your dentist immediately could be a wise decision. 

Painkillers For Toothache

Apart from the 8 home remedies for toothache, we discussed earlier. You can try the following painkillers. Over-the-counter pain medication like ibuprofen, acetaminophen and aspirin helps to reduce the pain caused by toothache temporarily until you see your dentist. 

Acetaminophen

Dentists suggest acetaminophen mostly for the children. However, some dentists suggest to alternate ibuprofen and acetaminophen every three hours. 

See Adult acetaminophen dosage chart

Ibuprofen

Ibuprofen is used as an everyday painkiller for various pains and aches. It reduces hormones which cause pain and swelling in the affected area. The usual dosage for adults is one or two 200mg tablets 3 times a day by leaving at least 6 hours between doses. Make sure not to take a higher dose without a prescription from a doctor.

Aspirin

Aspirin is also an everyday painkiller that can also use for the pain from toothaches. The usual dose is 1 or 2 tablets every 4-6 hours. However, it’s best to take aspirin with food to prevent stomachaches which could happen (you can swallow the capsule or tablet with water). This is not safe for children under 16 and pregnant or breastfeeding women. Make sure you don’t use aspirin if you have bleeding gums since it disturbs the process of blood clotting. Do not place aspirin directly on to your tooth. If you are allergic to aspirin, paracetamol would be the next best thing.