Human teeth are very strong, but under a few circumstances they can break or fracture. While minor cracks can be ignored, in case the pulp (nerve) is exposed or inflamed, a broken or cracked tooth can cause an extremely excruciating toothache. When you experience a tooth pain while eating hot or cold food and that too in the absence of cavity, most likely the problem is a result of a tooth fracture. So before you get to see your dentists for a permanent fix, there are a few things that can be done to relieve pain from a broken or cracked tooth.
Use Oil of Cloves (Eugenol)
Trust the age old-home remedy of placing a cotton ball immersed in clove oil to treat pain arising from a broken tooth. In a popular journal of 19th century, titled “Mother’s Remedies”, the author has mentioned use of clove oil as a pain relief method. And even in 21st century, almost all dental experts swear by this homespun treatment and recommend it to all experiencing toothache. This oil has antiseptic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce pain and even prevent future cavities.
Just immerse a cotton ball in Eugenol and using a pair of tweezers, place it on the affected or paining area, for about 10 seconds. Clove oil may burn your gums a bit, but it will provide immediate relief. You can easily buy clove oil from health food stores.
Grab Over-the-Counter Pain Relief Medicine
If you have to wait a little before getting proper treatment, make yourself comfortable with over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers. A pain relief medication will reduce your suffering because generally toothaches are caused by an irritated or inflamed tissue or nerve, so an anti-inflammatory medication will work best for dental pain. There are a couple of choices in OTC treatments; perhaps the best will be ibuprofen.
Gargle Using Warm Salt Water
Salt can help stave off bacteria from the infected tooth. It works as an antiseptic and helps remove possible infection. Gargling with warm salt water twice a day can alleviate a toothache caused from a broken tooth.
You can easily prepare this treatment: Grab your salt container, add half a spoon of common salt in a glass full of warm water and mix it properly. Take a gulp of it and swish it properly like mouthwash. Don’t gulp down the mixture; just spit it out after swishing. Then again take another sip, swish it back, and repeat the process.
All-in-all, the healing properties of this mineral compound cannot be ignored.
Flush it Out
A lot of times, the food particles and plaque get trapped between the teeth, which become the root cause of toothache. Removal of these particles can ease the pain from toothache. You can try flossing and using interdental brushes for pain relief.
Apart from all these effective remedies, watch out what you eat and drink when suffering from a broken or cracked tooth. Avoid foods and beverages that are hot, cold, acidic or high in sugar.
To avoid complications that may arise from a broken tooth, visit your dentist as soon as possible. The longer you will linger on the treatment to restore the tooth, the lesser will be the chances of revival of tooth.