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Expert Article: Healthy Lifestyle, The Ayurveda Way – How To Wake Up And Clean Teeth

Dinchayra is a daily healthy procedure narrated in Ayurveda classics. Our previous article looked at how waking up early in the morning from bed helps to keep oneself healthy. There is an ideal way to wake up from bed; ancient people included them in rituals as they have the scientific backgrounds and benefits, and clubbing them with holy rituals made them easier to propagate in the ancient world. Today the scenario has changed, and the rationale behind every ritual needs to be explained scientifically. If a person gets up from the bed abruptly, it may be potentially dangerous.

During sleep, various body activities become feeble and, vital organs too work at their minimal level, blood pressure and blood circulation are at their low. When a person gets up from bed, there is a low blood supply to the brain and heart this looking a simple event, but if done on regular basis can lead to the phenomenon of shear pressure changes in blood vessels that eventually lead to occlusive vascular disease like CVA, stroke, heart disease, vertigo, etc. In this article, ideal health practices will be discussed.

How To Wake Up And Clean Teeth

Oral cavity hygiene is essential for good health. It is important concerning health and aesthetics also. No bad breath, healthy teeth & gums, no furred tongue, and proper salivation and taste sensation. Brushing teeth is not complete oral or buccal cavity hygiene but the part only. The article highlights the unexplored and under-explored aspects of Ayurveda that will be dealt with here.

When a person is sleeping, all the body organs also remains physiologically sluggish, and when a person is awakened, all body organs perform at their optimal level.

How To Get Up From Bed

The previous article of the Dincharya series dealt with waking up from bed before sunrise now, we ought to know what needs to be performed during getting up and making the body in active mode from inactive mode. The ritual traditionally observed is as below:

1. Turn to the right side with closed eyes.
2. Gradually roll and straight up the back.
3. With the palms covering the eyes and gently massaging the eyes, feel the energy of the hand.
4. Take the palms to the head, neck, shoulder, knees and legs.
5. Gradually open eyes and see your open palm and pray - "कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मी करमध्ये सरस्वति। करमूले च गोविंदम्‌ प्रभाते कर दर्शनम्‌॥".
6. After opening your eyes, put your left leg on the ground, chanting the mantra of land, and get permission to get up and put your legs on earth. The mantra stanza chanted is - "विष्णु पत्नि नमस्तुभ्यं पादः स्पर्शं समस्वमे"
7. Get up from bed and get started on your daily routine.

This simple-looking routine has rationale even today. As described above, all body organs remain sluggishly active during sleep, but as soon as one gets up, all the body organs become rapidly active. If the person follows this simple ritual gradually increases blood flow to all parts of the body, blood pressure increases, respiration increases, metabolism gears up and if this is not properly followed, it may lead to sheer pressure changes in blood vessels and may trigger oxidative damage to body tissues.

The author has tried to justify why this ritual needs to be an observed and brief scientific explanation. The detailed description of different organs & organ systems of the body like heart, brain, kidney, lungs, liver, circulatory system, nervous system, and the immune system is dealt with due to fear of elaborative description.

Oral Hygiene And Oral Health Care

After getting up, the first thing to be done is brushing and oral cleaning. Brushing is not only a measure of oral hygiene but a part of complete oral care. Traditionally brushing is called Danta Pavana or Danta Dhavana. This is done by herbal and holistic products known as Datuna. The stems of different herbs like Neem, Karanj, Yastimadhu, and other herbs having bitter, astringent taste can be used.

How To Wake Up And Clean Teeth

How To Clean Teeth

The stem of the herbs, approximately 12 angul long (15 -20 cms), and the approximate diameter of one's thumb i.e., 1.5 cm without nodes and moist - soft, is to be taken for brushing. The stem is to be chewed first and make one end soft that it is just like the bristles of the brush. This chewing or mastication process stimulates the secretion of saliva, it contains various helpful chemicals, including amylase, which denatures and destroys bacteria.

Pus pockets, if any, food debris and other materials get collected by mastication. Over and above the dental and gum benefit, this action stimulates muscle mastication and facial muscle, inhibiting ageing and improving face glow. Mastication exercise improves oral and facial health, possibly by chewing the stems. This is followed by cleaning teeth and massaging gums, one should observe that gums ought not to be hurt first, gums are massaged, followed by cleaning teeth on both sides laterally and upper teeth up to down and lower teeth down to up. Afterwards, rinse with water and gargle with water.

Tongue cleaning has been advocated in Ayurveda and practised in India for ages. This can be done with stem bark of the stems used for brushing or metal like gold, silver, copper or other metals. Cleaning the tongue starts from the base and rubbing the tongue cleaner to the front. This process removes the morbid material, cough, cell debris, and deposits from the tongue. This action cleans the tongue and improves taste sense. It has been observed that if stems of bitter taste plants do this shows more promising results, it improves taste, appetite, improves anorexia, improves bad breath.

Merits Over Conventional Practice

There are various merits of these practices over conventional oral care. Brushing is considered oral care, but it is not the only one. Nowadays, gargling and chewing gums are used for mastication and oral care, but it contains sugars or a sweet taste. Foodstuff, medicaments, and herbs containing sweet, sour, and salty tastes are considered bad for oral hygiene.

Salts have been used in cleaning the teeth, which can be done by rubbing on teeth. In India, charcoal of different medicinal herbs was used for cleaning teeth, the charcoal of different herbs has different adsorption and thus will produce different effects on teeth, gum and oral health. Adsorption is a surface phenomenon that removes stains and bad odours and improves appetite. Nowadays, various oral care products use charcoal.

How To Wake Up And Clean Teeth

Gargling

Gargling is followed by gargling. Ayurveda describes two types of gargling viz. Gandusha and Kavala. There are various merits of these procedures, promoting better oral hygiene and various systemic effects. This will be dealt with in the upcoming articles.

Statutory instructions: The article is presented to increase the awareness about Ayurveda on the traditional knowledge of Ayurveda from old Ayurveda texts and applicable as per interpreting the ancient Ayurved text. Readers can read and get informed about Ayurveda, for more details and consultations, do contact Ayurveda physician or Ayurveda Hospital.

Story first published: Tuesday, July 12, 2022, 14:55 [IST]
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