What if I told you that you could do something that would help increase your bodyâs detoxification on a daily basis, that would be a one time purchase of a few bucks and literally take you less time than brushing your teeth?
What if I told you that you it didnât require you cooking anything, having to drag your butt to the grocery store (the last thing that many of us want to do during a busy week), and didnât require any physical energy or endurance other than raising your arm for a few seconds? âş
Sound too good to be true??
Well, itâs not! Tongue scraping is what Iâm talking about. I learned about it a few years ago now, in my Ayurvedic dinacharya, or daily routine, class with my teacher Dr. Jay. It is an ancient Ayurvedic practice outlined in the Charaka Samhita, one of the foundational Ayurvedic texts. But I have to admit that I only started tongue scraping just a few weeks ago! (We all put off things, even if we know its good for us sometimes, donât we?!) And I have to say, I am already addicted and canât recommend it more.
Okay, I know it may sound a bit weird. Let me back up a minuteâŚ
Iâve been talking since The Beauty Detox Solution about supporting our bodiesâ natural detoxification efforts, through a solid morning practice that doesnât tie up our bodyâs energy in digestion. Before noon/lunch, we want to capitalize on our bodies naturally being in âcleanseâ mode versus âdigestionâ mode, which happens when we start to consume heavier foods. Our morning practice involves drinking hot water with lemon, to help increase elimination, among other benefits, and also drinking the fiber-filled Glowing Green Smoothie.
In the morning, you may notice your bodyâs efforts at getting toxins out: you may (hopefully!) poop, your underarms stink and you need to take a shower before showing your face (and armpits!) in public. You may have sleep in your eyes.
The white coating is mucus and toxicity, or Ama, as itâs called in Ayurveda, which your body has expended a good amount of energy in pushing up your esophagus and out towards the surface. Itâs as if your body is telling you, âGet this outta me!â. Renowned Ayurvedic teacher Dr. Vasant Lad writes in his Textbook of Ayurveda: A Complete Guide to Clinical Assessment that âcoating on the tongue indicates the presence of toxins, which are an impediment to proper digestionâ.
Yet what do we do? We ignore it. We brush our teeth, maybe even brush our tongue, but unknowingly swallow all that toxicity.
Enter tongue scraping. What I have started doing, and recommend to you, is to scrape your tongue a few times, before you drink significant amounts of water, and before you brush your teeth. The white gunk- very satisfyingly I might add- scrapes right off into the scraper, and gets washed down the sink.
The vast majority of halitosis, or bad breath, has been shown in research to correlate with the metabolic outputs of naturally occurring bacteria inside the mouth, typically occupying the very back of the tongue.2
You may be wondering about the bit I was referring to about âstimulatingâ the internal organs? This goes back to Eastern philosophy that everything is connected to everything else. Itâs like reflexology, where different points on your foot correspond to different organs. If youâve ever had a true reflexology session- it can really hurt!! I did them in Thailand and these elder Thai women would press so hard into my feet with this little wooden stick I would tear up!
Anyways⌠donât want to dwell on that memory âş. In a similar vein, the different the tongue is believed to likewise be a mirror to the organs of the body, and related to various organs, including the lungs, heart, spleen, stomach and so on. And by gently stimulating the areas of the tongue, via tongue scraping, you can gently remove these toxins from the tongue itself and simultaneously stimulate massage, and cleanse the associated organs and deep tissues. 6
Again, I recommend tongue scraping first thing. Nearly first thing. When I get up to pee before I even meditate (pee is first!), I scrape my tongue, because typically I start to drink the rest of the glass of water next to my bedside table around that point, and I donât want to swallow the ama/toxins!
Itâs super easy: First off, I recommend getting a stainless steel one. Hereâs a decent one. Secondly, stick out your tongue as far as it comfortable. Position the scraper back as far as is comfortable, and pull it forward so it removes the white coating. Repeat around 7 times, or some say up even up to 14 (I never do it that many times, personally!).
I also recommend rinsing the tongue scraper off in between scrapes. It gets just nasty. Letâs get real for a minute: itâs kinda like getting out a fantastic black head cleanly or having an amazing enema or bowel movementâŚsomehow, whether we like to admit these things publicly or not, detoxing our bodies, with visible results, is SO satisfying! Itâs like saying âI got you body! This crap is going bye bye!â.
So give tongue scraping a go, and let me know how you do!
A snapshot of my tongue scraper.
All love,
Kimberly
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