My first introduction to yoga was as an elective tenth-grade PE class. While it may have been limited in education, it was an excellent beginner course that opened my eyes to a yoga revelation that has stuck with me since. One of the homework assignments was to scrape the tongue in the morning before brushing. Scrape the tongue? As odd as it sounded, in Ayurveda this is practiced on a daily basis. And by taking one look at your tongue in the AM, it is easy to see why.
Upon waking up in the morning, our tongues are coated with a white film. Considered ama, or impurities, in Ayurveda, this film is the main source of what we call “morning breath.” It is produced as a result of our body detoxifying overnight. What you are seeing are the toxins your digestive system is working on eliminating. As gross as it sounds, it can be used as an indicator to your overall health. Your tongue correlates with various parts of the body, and if the film is built up in certain areas it can tell you there is an increase of toxins in that particular organ.
When you wake up, take a look at your tongue. Do yourself a favor and remove those nasty toxins with a tongue scraper. If you can't find one, try a metal spoon. Starting from the back, scrape off a layer of toxins and rinse the scraper in warm water. Repeat these steps five times. Try this routine daily for a month. Notice any difference?
By removing this nasty build up, you are improving your overall health. Fresher breath, improved oral hygiene, boosted immunity, better taste, and preventing toxins from being reabsorbed into the body are all benefits you will achieve with a little morning tongue scraping. And if you want to advance your health further, you can follow the tongue scraping procedure with oil pulling. Another Ayurvedic practice, oil pulling can be done by swishing oil around your mouth for 15 minutes. Try coconut oil as it contains antimicrobial properties that are sure to kill off any bacteria that may be hiding around your taste buds.
As you practice this daily, remember to always check your tongue first. It may be telling you more information about your body than you realize.
Tongue scraping and oil pulling can be an important addition to your morning routine, but are not meant to replace brushing and flossing.
