Home Remedies for Toothache

Toothache is one ailment that can make your life miserable. The intense and unbearable pain won’t let you sleep, eat, drink or even draw in cold air through the mouth because of your tender tooth! Generally, toothache is caused when tooth decay invades or is about to infect the pulp chamber, which contains nerve endings and tiny blood vessels.
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However, according to Philip D. Corn, DDS, Director of the Pennsylvania Academy of General Dentistry, pain is not the only problem, a toothache may be a symptom of several other things. It can indicate gum infection, molar decay or cracked bicuspid. It can even be fallout of sinus problem or simply be due to a piece of food caught between the teeth! Although, there are many over-the-counter toothache cures, they all have some side effects. Today, toothache home remedies are becoming quite popular.

Home remedies for toothache

The best ‘home remedy’ is to take good care of your teeth! So, always rinse your mouth regularly, especially after meals; brush and floss to remove morsels sticking between the teeth; and generally follow good oral hygiene. However, if you do get saddled with a toothache, opt for toothache pain home remedy instead of over-the-counter medication, since they’re safe and effective. Let’s see what they are:

a. Ice massage the hand:

Gently rubbing an ice cube in the area between the forefinger and the thumb for several minutes is an effective toothache remedy, as it eases toothache. It acts by overwhelming the pain impulses that usually travel along the nerve pathways. It has a 60 to 90% success rate. Ice placed directly on a throbbing tooth also helps ease the pain.
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b. Garlic:

Placing a clove of garlic with little rock salt on the affected tooth helps relieve or even cure the pain.

c. Onion:

Toothache pain is often allayed by placing a small piece of onion on the bad tooth or gum, since onion has antibacterial properties that kill the germs in the mouth.

d. Lime:

This rich source of vitamin C prevents tooth decay and also provides toothache pain relief.

e. Wheat grass:

The juice of wheat grass is an excellent mouthwash for tooth decay and a natural toothache remedy. It also draws out the toxins from the gums and checks bacterial growth.

f. Asafoetida:

This bitter, foul-smelling resinous material obtained from the roots of several plants of the parsley family, helps in instant toothache relief.

g. Bay berry:

This is an effective toothache natural cure. Applying a paste made from bay berry bark mixed with vinegar helps relieve the toothache.

h. Oil of clove:

Clove oil, put directly onto the affected tooth or dabbed with a cotton ball on the decayed tooth, relieves toothache.

i. Pepper:

A pinch of pepper powder mixed with common salt is an excellent cure. It’s especially effective against the increased sensitiveness of the teeth.

j. Oil of oregano:

This is an effective remedy for toothache, because it displays antimicrobial activity against food-borne pathogens that cause tooth decay.

k. Salt:

A salt water mouthwash gets rid of tooth infection and helps cure toothache. Thorough rinsing of the mouth with salt water is important.

l. Liquor:

Good news for those who love their drinks! By squeezing a wad of cotton wool soaked in brandy against the affected tooth helps numb the pain.toothache-home-remedies-2 You can also make the gum numb by taking a swig of whiskey and holding it over the painful tooth.

Toothache can strike without warning and once it does, it just can’t be ignored. So, if you’re prepared to tackle this menace with homemade toothache remedy, you can be sure of a quick and effective relief. However, discuss these remedies with your physician beforehand before using them.

693 CommentsPosted in Featured, Physical Health
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  • Nicholas

    I had this intense tooth pain just minutes ago before I entered this website, the kind of pain that makes you want go insane. Vanilla extract made the pain go away.. The past few days my pain was moderate and for that I used clover oil and it worked great..but for intense pain it didnt work as good as vanilla extract. I got this advice from people here…. thanks you so much without this advice I wouldn’t be able so sleep..

  • Susanna

    Would you believe Garlic? Garlic is a natural pain reliever anti-inflammatory and is a natural infection fighter. Take fresh garlic press and put it in/on the affected area. 2 garlic capsules daily plus vit C and D and 1000 mg calcium will absolutely protect your teeth gums along with brushing flossing and rinsing. Salt water swish is terrific before you do the garlic. use 2tsp in very warm water about 2 oz to 3 swish around infected area and tooth for at least 2 mins. It burns but it also is working . Do this every cpl hours you will see swelling going away. then do the garlic especially if cavity, place in and around area leave for several mins to 1 hr. The pain will go.After the swelling and pain disappears do this.. If you cannot afford a dentist, as a temporary sol. get a pack of den-temp take pea size roll into ball take 1 drop super glue GEL put on tip of the den temp insert into cavity or lost filling. bite down hold for few sec so it sets. Do not drink or eat for 1 hr to allow it to cure. It works and stays there long time!Helps prevent re-infection! Dentists use the same formula its just not called super glue. But do make sure you see a dentist when you can make payment arrangements or try to find a free clinic in your State or County…PS. Garlic also fights cancers…! find more info about the miracle of garlic on any web site. Good luck.

  • Jessica

    I have tried everything imaginable to kill my toothache. I went to the grocery store and picked up some vanilla extract and some ground cloves. I tried the vanilla extract first and it done okay, but as soon as I put the ground cloves on my tooth, the pain was instantly gone. I was hurting for well over a week and nothing would help but this. Hope everyone finds the relief they are looking for. I would rather have three children back to back than have a toothache.

  • james

    i have nerve damage, but no dental insurance I have bad teeth becaue of a car accident and i need dentures. i only have a few teeth left, i broke one of my few teeth i have left and i took 600mg of ms contin, and no relief. i couldnt get an appt. for a week so i tried the vanilla extract, low and behold it worked. i dont know how long it will work but my appt. is in 2 days so thank everyone for the advise.
    p.s. ambesol didnt work either

  • Toya

    I’ve had the most awful toothache that u can imagine. I tried anbesol works for a while but when u use it too much it doesn’t wanna work anymore. So a friend of mine told me to rub hot sauce on it. I jumped off the phone and immediately went to find the hot sauce. TO MY SURPRISED it worked. Hopes this works for u as it did for me!!

  • Sonja

    Got tooth pain from a lost filling/broken tooth. Usually what helped me was colloidal silver combined with DMSO (you can get it at the feed store or online, it has to be the 99.9% pure one) 90/10% by volume at the slightest sign of discomfort. DMSO is a solvent and will pull the colloidal silver into the tooth killing the infection. But the current toothache is worse than at other times, and needed faster relief, and nothing helped. But thought of MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane) which is basically the same thing as DMSO. Emptied a capsule into a glass and with a wet finger rubbed the powder on and around the tooth. It took the edge off the pain within seconds. As an aside, if you cannot afford a dentist, ask them for a payment plan. I think most dentist will work with you in this regard.

  • tana

    i tried the garlic didnt work then i tried the whiskey and it worked a little better

  • HELPPP

    please please help.

    i have had severe toothache for the last 3 years on and off and had 3 teeth taken out but i constanly keep my oral hygeine high and the pain seems to move to the opposite side of my mouth over different periods. dont get me wrong i can have good weeks (2 at the most) but this pain comes back and it seems that it gets worse everytime…
    my docotor believes it is neuralia and prescribed me diclofenac 50mg and it did work really well & i only used it once i started to feel the niggles begin… this has since stopped working within the last week and it is at its worse. i went back to the doctor who has told me to stop using this medicine and changed me on to naproxen 500mg tablets and so far this pain is getting no better but more worse than anything

    finally the only way i can explain this pain is…
    where i am missing the teeth is the sharpest areas % it is like having a boiling hot poker twisting inside my face, it can get so bad that it has me more or less crying into my pillow.

    if anybody has any ideas or is in the same situation please advise me on stopping this for good

    Jaske

  • sammie

    Yes! part if my filling of my tooth came out and was in SUPER BAD PAIN! someone said grab a Tea Bag with in 3 minutes true relief within10 minutes it WORKS Like a type of Novocaine! Try it! It works! I still go to go to a dentist because I so not want to fill like pain like that again but I have been out of pain ever since, it been 3 days!

  • T

    Clove oil…i spent the better part of a month in pain ob antibiotics and being shuffled from dentist to another and having to wait to get in and it was the only thing that stopped me from putting a string around my tooth and the other around the door…They gave me vicodin but when you have school and work and the kids have activities you cant exactly take that mid-day..it will sting going on and taste horrid, but it will numb the area until medication kicks in and gives relief even if you start smelling like a christmas ham…it’s at GNC

  • alex

    Best way i found, as weird as it sounds, is to put a lighted cigarette in the ear on the side the painful tooth is, just stick it in and let it there until it reaches the filter or burns your ear of :P . Another remedy i came across in years of pain is this: take some garlic, smash it up, wrap it in some cotton and same thing… stick it in the ear. Sounds funny but it works like a charm. The next in line would be alcohol, just hold in on the tooth for a min or so, numbs the pain but hurts the gums.

  • Dro

    The only thing that helps a tooth ache until you see your doctor is: dip cotton in some alcohol [vodka]
    And put it in the cavity it just num the place and the pain will disappear in a minute.

  • sonja

    Helppp: re neuralgia: The only natural remedy for nerve problems that I’m aware of is DMSO (learn about it at dmso.org). It has the power to heal nerves. You can get it at most feed stores. It’s used for injuries in racehorses, and FDA approved for a urinary tract condition. There’s also a book (available through amazon.com) called DMSO: Nature’s Healer. I’ve healed a dog twice from coonhound paralysis with it, a condition where the nerve sheath are being stripped away…she’s still with us running around like a young dog, just amazing stuff. It’s accumulative…the more often you take it, the more it will help…Good luck to you. I pray you’ll be feeling better soon.

  • Melanie

    I just had my first baby. While I was pregnant one of my filings fell out. Because I was a high risk pregnancy, my dr told me not to go in until after the baby was born. Well I’m breastfeeding and it’s impossible for me to get to the dentist when I’ve got a baby who wants to eat every hour. About two weeks ago, part of my tooth broke off and it was black! I was going to go to the dentist immediately and then my husband went on strike so of course we couldn’t afford for me to go. It has always hurt a bit but the past two days it has been just killing me. Giving birth was a piece of cake compared to this!

    I have been taking Advil and Tylenol and I do find that when I brushed/flossed and rinsed at night I got some relief but I don’t want to take a lot of drugs because of the breastfeeding. So I tried a bit of the vanilla extract right on the tooth with a q-tip and it worked wonders. It went from a screaming pain to a dull roar. Hopefully I’ll be able to get in to the dentist soon and he’ll be able to save the tooh. I work in customer service and I think having a big gap in my mouth would be a bit off-putting to customers!

  • Hailey

    my mom&dad swear by clove oil to relieve their toothaches.They also have used lemon extract,vanilla extract and in a pinch tea tree oil. All relieve the pain but burn a little when applied to the sore tooth.Unlike orajel these extracts relieve the pain for several hours.Good luck to those in pain.

  • Bo

    I have been dealing with a couple bad teeth for awhile. I have severe anxiety when it comes to dentists. So, put off needed dental work.

    In doing research, I came across someone who mentions how a diet high in protein, good fats and oils, and veggies (green more so) would help the problem. He also mentioned something about sugary foods causing problems. Supposedly, it lowers the immune system for several hours at a time.

    What I have learned is if I eat sugary anything – even after I clean it out of my mouth – after 2 or 3 hours some parts of my teeth and areas where my gums meet my teeth will hurt – sometimes severely. It’s crazy. As long as I stay away from the sugary stuff I have less problems with pain.

    For pain, I use the regular pain relievers but will mix them up – like 2 baby aspirin and 2 IBU’s, or 2 baby aspirin with 1 IBU and 1 Tylenol, and will also suck on another baby aspirin at the area most bothering me. I will also mix up and drink down 300 to 350 mg powdered calcium carbonate with a little water. Sometimes that seems to help sometimes just by itself. I guess I might be low on calcium.

    Earlier tonight, I forgot to not eat sugary food and ate a bunch of really good gluten free ginger snaps (they are my weakness). The pain had kicked up pretty bad but is gone now after I took the pain reliever mix-match combination and then about a half hour later the calcium. :)

  • Ben

    I used the vanilla extract, and it helps some, but the taste of vanilla is terrible, so i fallowed it up with a little “Whitetail Buck Whiskey” on a small swap and just sucked on it for a minute and let me tell you i will be keeping whiskey in the house for reasons other than to drink while watching football.

  • Stacy

    Several people have claimed how well ibuprofen works on most kinds of tooth pains, which it does! In many cases, it works as well as, if not better than codeine (somewhat small amounts of codeine, anyway!) The problems many of them were encountering with ibuprofen were SEVERE heartburn, and even nausea in some cases. There are a few causes for these side-effects, as well a few remedies; some are much more simple than you’d believe!

    First of all, there are two major causes for the heartburn, & sometimes even the nausea. Yes, Ibuprofen can irritate the stomach. So can Aleve (Naproxen) by the way, some times MUCH worse. Also, the actual condition of the teeth can cause heartburn. Rotting and/or decaying teeth, absesses & infections, can all significantly increase heartburn episodes. Especially when you take into account that as those rotting or decaying teeth start really hurting (and contributing to stomach acid/heartburn), what do you do? You greatly increase the amount of ibuprofen you take (for the pain), right? Now, also the ability your teeth (or lack of) to properly chew your food completely & thouroughly can contribute to heartburn & excess stomach acid. If your back teeth are in such bad shape, or possibly even missing, that you cannot properly chew your food; then you cannot properly digest your food. Thus resulting in indegestion sometimes, as well as heartburn.

    There are a few solutions, some rather simple. You can take an OTC ant-acid or acid-reducer to control the heartburn. If medication, i.e. ibuprofen, is the culprit, I find a liquid such as Maloxus ually works best. (Be sure to take it with the med’s or up to 30 min’s prior.) If your actual teeth, & not necessarly the medicine, or just the med’s, is the cause; then I find an OTC acid-reducer (such as a pill you take 1-2 times/day, every day) works best. It also goes with out saying that if your teeth are the problem, fixing them will help tremendously, if not completely. Just be sure to check with your Dr., Dentist, or local Pharmacist before taking any OTC med’s.

    By the way, my old man’s a Dentist, so I am somewhat knowledgable on this subject. (Besides, I’ve had the exact same problem for almost twenty years, and it’s been working for me for twenty years!!!)

  • Mark

    The whiskey worked best for me, however after swishing it over the tooth you should swallow it. Repeat this about 15 times, then decide to take the garbage out at 2am, fall over over your kids bike and smash your shoulder onto the concrete. Just like like that you forget about the toothache.

  • Ann

    Thanks to everyone for the great remedies. I have a bleeding wisdom tooth that needs to be pulled. I’ve been using periodixe (DO not swollow) but it didn’t work today. Tried the pure vanilla on a cotton ball and within 10 minutes, no pain. Still need to have tooth pulled but relief for now.

    PS. Flossing helps to get the build-up off the teeth and prevent the infection followed by periodixe. That was my ususal routine and had been workign for months. Time to see the dentist :(
    Thanks!

  • andy

    good blog.The only natural remedy for nerve problems that I’m aware of is DMSO (learn about it at dmso.org). It has the power to heal nerves. You can get it at most feed stores. It’s used for injuries in racehorses, and FDA approved for a urinary tract condition.

  • Jamie

    Well seeing as how I awoke at 3am with a tooth ache bad enough to make me cry, I decided to try home remedies. Well as we r n the process of moving, I don’t have much to use here. I looked for Vinilla must be at the other house. i looked for lemon juice…Oh wait don’t think I ever owned the stuff…. Ice just sounded liked it would hurt and make me cold….Bengay on the jaw… on that sensitive skin… I think not… that stuff burns the hell out of my back if applied….So needless to say was running out of options….
    Then i found the bottle of Jack and my morphine for cancer. The morphine helped minutely for the tooth ache….The jack helped a lot…

  • Christean

    ALCOHOL WORKS. The higher percentage the better. I started noticing mouthwash worked if I swished with it for long enough, but that listerine (21.6% alcohol) worked way better than scope (16ish% alcohol), so then I went to swishing with whiskey, and it kills the pain for an hour or more, completely. I think that’s why vanilla extract works, too. Anywho, yeah, good luck with your tooth pain!!

  • Masha

    Thank you for the great advice! I have been in extreme pain the past 2 nights. Wasn’t able to sleep at all. Then found myself searching the web for home remedies at 3AM and so thankful to have found this!

    What worked for me – ground cloves on the paintful tooth, together with ice massage and an ice pack on the cheek. 10 mins later and I’m finally going to bed to get some sleep…

  • Aarti

    Thanks all for the tips, I got relief from ibuprofen 400mg. I tried anbesol but did not work for more than 2 mins. Since my toothache is due to sensitivity i tried brushing slowly with lots of sensodyne and i felt immediate relief, i would say ibuprofen did the trick for me. Make sure you get the right dosage, as 200mg never worked for me and i was very disappointed and felt helpless, if you think 400 mg is too low try 600 mg…i’m no doc but just giving suggestions to relieve pain.

  • Stephanie

    Today is Thanksgiving, and I developed a toothache. After reading through dozens of tips here, I sliced a garlic clove in half [to expose the oils] and placed it between my gum and the sore tooth. I’ve been pain free for over an hour now and will be able to enjoy my Thanksgiving dinner.

  • sochi

    thanks you all…………..all the home remedy works for me especially the salt raising solution.

  • Tim

    I tried a few of the thins listed on here for my throbbing toothache, and most of it was mildly helpful at best. The vanilla extract mildly eased the pain for about 5 minutes, then it came right back. Someone’s comment about holding hot salt water until it cooled on the side of the ache seems to work the best for me. It looks like it is infected. But I have no dental insurance of any kind and I’m pretty much broke right now so the hot salty water trick will have to suffice until the pain subsides on its own.

  • mandy garcia

    gargle ice cold water. it will make your mouth num. but first you will feel pain then after wards your tut ache will be gone.

  • Jay

    Ive had a tooth ache for nearly 4 days now im getting through Ibuprofen like tik taks (taking them every 2 hours) and they did help at 1st now ive stopped taking them for fear of an overdose and the fact that the nerve in my tooth has seemed to adapted to the ibuprofen so its not working now,
    also lying down just makes things worse so saying im having trouble sleeping is a understatement,
    Ive brought a bottle of Jack Daniels and coke and it seems to be doing the trick at numbing the pain, I just hope the nerve in the tooth dies soon especially this close to christmas,
    otherwise im going to miss out on christmas dinner with the family and end up sitting in a corner holding the side of my face wishing for the end,
    I nether thought toothache could be this painful but i feel for anyone who is going through the same excruciating pain..stay strong and dont do anything stupid!

    • Tisisnotthelife

      toothache is apparently one of THE worse pains that a human being can go through. i’ve had so many of my friends tell me that they would rather go through child birth for 48 hours than have a toothache for 2 hours.

  • bilal

    got a really bad toothache and it’s hurting till now please tell me a easy way to get rid of thing

    • toothachesrhorrid

      did you ever find a way to get rid of it? because right now, i am going through something very unbearable!

  • bridgett

    thank god for all of you. i have been up for hours tonight with a tooth ache. 2 of em actually. i tried the salt water and it helped some but the vanilla worked almost immediately. i dont care how,all icare about is the pain is gone for 20 min now and i am happy and goin back to bed.. i hope anyone with a tooth aches find quick relief… id rather give birth! gnight folks!!

  • Tandy

    Ok! I tried the salt water and it worked for about an hour of doing it every 5 mins or so. I have a hole in my tooth and the nerve is exposed so I also tried the potato that was a no go. I then tried the pepper that also didnt work so I tried the vanilla and that didn’t work either. The one thing that did work was bitting down on a piece of onion which was the last thing I tried. Onion wasn’t mentioned very much so I figured it didn’t work. So my advice to you would be try that first if you have a whole in your tooth. Good luck to you all now I’m going to try and get some sleep. The worst part of it all is the pain and it’s now Christmas eve which I want to feel great so I can enjoy the day with my kids!

  • Latinya

    hi everyone i have pain my wisdom tooth top left hand side and its not joke…. i cried today cause the pain was so bad that it had to come out. What do u do when u have no insurance and u try everything i have took over 45 (800mg) pains pills in less than 3 days and the pain dont stop so i looked this site up today and seen VICKS VAPERUB and i tried it and it works my face is hot but the pain is gone….THANKS from Camden New Jersey

  • erica

    well i have tryed just about everything from gargling the salt water which makes me gag a little as i swish it in the mouth,i use orajel and anbesol, brush my gums quite a bit on side of toothake and my hubby says that makes the infection or toothake worse by brushin, i then went to a clinic to see a dr and was put on 500mg of amoxicillin for the infection or whatever it is i have and also a pain med called diclofenac, i just got the 2 meds yesterday so i guess it aint really let me know too soon or yet when it wants to take my toothache from me. growing up in my younger and teen years my parent would never take me to the dentist since my mom and i both are afraid of needles, but my hubby had me added to his mcdonalds dental insurance and we r waitin on the card so i can call and go see a dentist, but i gotta get me one that will put me completely out or asleep, i dont do needles and i WILL NOT allow anyone to come with needles around my mouth, soon as i see em i scream just like when i have to have blood drawn from time to time for my seizure medicine, i sit there and soon as they stick it in me i either hollar, scream, or just simply look at em and say hurry and take that thing out my arm, so i would do the same for a needle comin towards my face, and as of now i barely have about 5 teeth or so left in my whole mouth so they wont have many to have to pull, but they still gotta make sure im put to sleep, if i cant be knocked out completely then no dentists, NO WAY HO ZAY

  • LadyJ

    whole cloves…buy from grocer and place one inside the gum by tooth!!!!! tastes funny at first but really works for me EVERYTIME!!!!

  • http://www.allkind.com.au/cabinet-making alesiamedas

    Thanks for posting the following home remedies for toothache. The very painful ever is having a toothache, base on my thorough research about toothache it is generally identifies discomfort around the teeth or jaws primarily due to a dental condition. Generally in most instances, toothaches are brought on by tooth issues, like a dental cavity, a cracked tooth, an exposed tooth root, or gum illness. When I was a kid when I had a toothache my grand mother asked me to get a salt and the put it to my tooth because according to her (that time my Grand ma was still alive) salt was fighting against the bacteria of the tooth. For me, those remedies can cure temporarily and much better to consult your personal dentist so that it will not be infected.

  • troy

    what about rubbing alcahol? will it help kill the pain

  • Travis

    i crushed baby asprin and applied directly to area as paste. (lick my finger, stick in aspirin powder, rub on gum). its important to remember that a lot of times the tooth hurts but the pain gets there via nerves in back by molar or gum above tooth so thats the area to attach. salt works great too. warm salt water. onion and garlic are interesting especially if you got an absess going might slow that down. of course any ‘extract’ that uses alcohol as a solvent is gonna work. if your vanilla extract didnt work its probably alcohol free. a swab of the old school night quil would probably work or any cough syrup with alcohol. only a dab will do you of high proof alcohol.

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