Natural Breath Fresheners

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I used to be a chewing gum addict. Who doesn’t love gum, right? Yummy flavors, something to chew on, and it keeps your breath fresh for a couple hours. However, I came to have two problems with gum. First, it gave me massive jaw aches to chew it all day long. (I tend to store stress in my jaw, and chewing for hours exacerbated the tension and pain.) Second, I realized that gum wasn’t REAL. It’s not a food – it’s just a bunch of chemicals. And who wants to chew on dyes and manufactured flavors and other chemicals all day long? Not me! And I feel similarly about breath mints – they are the same thing, with a zip of sugar, or (worse?) fake sweeteners.

c. Purcell Mountain Farms

So…I found an herbal solution: carminative seeds. These are seeds that are warming to the body, and are typically used for indigestion (upset stomach, gas, etc.). They include fennel seed, caraway seed, anise seed, dill seed, and even cardamom.

To make natural breath fresheners for on-the-go usage, simply take an old Altoids tin, or a similarly-sized container of your choice, and fill it with a mixture of these seeds. I typically use a 50/50 mix of fennel and caraway, as these are two of my favorite seeds. Sometimes, I add dill seeds and crushed cardamom.

c. Bigoven.com

You will want to experiment with these seeds before you make a mixture of them (or use just one type). You may find that some are way too strong for you. Cardamom, especially! A little goes a LONG way with those! If you love cardamom, though, you can simply buy the pods (Mountain Rose Herbs is a great source), and split them open as needed, and suck on the seeds. Just make sure that you buy pods that are green, and store them in the fridge to keep them fresh.

If you choose to mix up seeds in a container, as I do, then simply take a pinch and chew on them as needed, between and/or after meals. They really do freshen your breath! You will be surprised. They even make your teeth feel cleaner. And best of all, when you eat these after a meal, the seeds will help stimulate digestion, so they do double duty!

There are only two things about carminative seeds that might bother you. They can be a bit messy – my boyfriend calls me the Squirrel, because he always finds seeds in my car, or on the couch. I tend to take big pinches, and some of the seeds drop out. You can prevent this by using a small plastic or glass bottle to contain them, rather than a tin – this way you can directly sprinkle the seeds into your mouth by tipping the bottle, rather than going hand-to-mouth. And the second thing that might bug you is that they do tend to get stuck in your back teeth. That never bothered me, though, as they work themselves out pretty quickly.

You can go for more traditional methods, though, and eat a sprig of parsley after a meal. But I don’t find that to be very portable!

So ditch the gum habit and try natural breath fresheners. You will get fresh breath AND better digestion!

Copyright: A Green Spell
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