🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Tooth-cleaning and teeth-strengthening formulas refer to prescriptions that make teeth white and clean, firm and stable. Their mechanism involves dispelling wind and clearing heat, aromatic purification, removing dirt and debris, tonifying the kidneys and consolidating essence, nourishing blood and activating circulation. Commonly used home remedies are as follows. [Formula One] Salt 120 grams (calcined), apricot kernels 30 grams (soaked, skin and tip removed). Grind into paste; use to brush teeth daily. This prescription originates from *Taiping Shenghui Fang*, an early prototype of toothpaste, which not only whitens teeth but also prevents dental caries. [Formula Two] Lingxiao fragrant herb, fragrant white芷, green salt, and rhubarb root, each 15 grams; fine cinnamon 6 grams; musk (separately ground) 1.5 grams; fine powder of sandpiper and fine powder of gypsum, each 30 grams. First grind the first five ingredients into fine powder, then mix with the last three, and further refine. Apply morning and evening using fingers to rub on teeth, followed by rinsing with warm water. This formula comes from *Yuyao Yuanfang*, effective for whitening teeth, eliminating bad breath, and treating black or yellow teeth. [Formula Three] Agarwood and musk, each 3 grams; fine cinnamon 15 grams; rhubarb root, ligusticum, sweetgrass leaf, fragrant pine, and white芷, each 8 grams; gypsum 125 grams; cold water stone 60 grams. All herbs ground into fine powder; rub on teeth every morning. From *Yuyao Yuanfang*, this formula has aromatic purification and disperses cold and dampness, suitable for dental plaque and bad breath. [Formula Four] Cold water stone, white quartz, and gypsum, each 30 grams; fine cinnamon, cinnabar, agarwood, each 15 grams; Sichuan rhubarb and lacteal stone, each 30 grams; musk and cloves, each 0.3 grams. Grind all herbs into fine powder through a sieve, mix evenly. Use daily in the morning and at night to rub on teeth. This formula makes teeth shiny and white.
[Formula Five] White alum as needed. Grind into fine powder; use toothbrush dipped in this powder to brush teeth. Removes tobacco staining and whitens teeth.
[Formula Six] Root bark of Lycium barbarum, plum kernel, raw rehmannia root, apricot kernels, each 30 grams; Sichuan rhubarb 45 grams; ligusticum, musk, and wasp nest, each 15 grams. Crush into fine powder, pass through sieve. Use 3 grams each time, wrap in gauze, keep in mouth and swallow saliva. This formula treats yellow or black, dry, lusterless teeth.
[Formula Seven] White芷, white peony root, sedge root, white quartz, fine cinnamon, Sichuan chuanxiong, equal parts. Crush and grind into powder; use regularly to brush teeth. Treats yellow or black teeth.
[Formula Eight] Green vitriol 15 grams (half used raw, half stir-fried until smoke evaporates, then cooled), gallnut, chebulic myrobalan peel, each 15 grams; fragrant white芷 9 grams; fragrant pine 6 grams, chestnut husk 6 grams, date pit ash 9 grams, frog shell 6 grams, bile vitriol 15 grams, fragrant cyperus 12 grams, musk 1.5 grams. Mix into fine powder, add musk, grind again until uniform. After brushing teeth in the morning, dip toothbrush into a small amount of this powder and gently brush between teeth. Wait a moment, then rinse with warm water. This formula removes stubborn black deposits in interdental spaces and prevents toothache.
[Formula Nine] Sea clam shell, amber, white quartz, pearl, agate, bright sand, each 30 grams; musk 0.3 grams. Grind into powder, finely pulverize in a mortar. Each day, break one end of a willow twig, apply medicine, and rub on teeth. This formula makes teeth white and clean.
[Formula Ten] Vinegar. Hold half a mouthful of vinegar in the mouth, swish for 2–3 minutes, then spit out. Brush with toothbrush, then rinse with clear water. Repeat this method removes tobacco stains and cleans teeth.
[Formula Eleven] Rhubarb root 3 grams, bone ash 6 grams, white芷 2.5 grams, gypsum 4.5 grams, musk in small quantity. Powder the herbs. Before use, rinse mouth with warm water, then apply the powder to teeth. Helps whiten and clean teeth.
[Formula Twelve] Raw rhubarb, cooked rhubarb, raw gypsum, cooked gypsum, bone-breaker, silver eucommia, green salt, table salt, each 30 grams; alum, calcined alum, angelica root, each 15 grams. All herbs ground into fine powder. In the morning, first apply the powder to tooth roots, then wash face. Afterwards, rinse with cold water and spit out. This formula was presented by Huang Gongnong to Empress Dowager Cixi. Long-term use keeps teeth white and prevents loosening even in old age.
[Formula Thirteen] Green salt, raw gypsum, each 15 grams; prepared psoralea fruit 12 grams; Sichuan pepper (remove seeds), white芷, fine cinnamon, each 5 grams; fangfeng, mint leaves, early lotus grass, each 8 grams. Dry herbs under sunlight, grind into fine powder. Each morning, dip toothbrush into the powder, gently brush all teeth, hold in mouth for 3–5 minutes, then rinse with clear water. This formula strengthens teeth and relieves pain.
[Formula Fourteen] Raw rehmannia root, duhuo, each 90 grams. Cut into small pieces, soak in 500 ml water overnight, then hold in mouth. This formula treats loose and painful tooth roots.
[Formula Fifteen] Japanese angelica root (no over-roasting), earth chuanxiong, fine cinnamon, angelica root, equal parts. Grind into fine powder, sieve. Dip toothbrush in water, pick up powder, rub on teeth. Do not immediately rinse with water—keep mouth closed and let the medicinal aroma penetrate deep into teeth for a long time before rinsing. This formula dispels wind and promotes qi flow, making teeth stronger.
[Formula Sixteen] Angelica root (wine-soaked), small Sichuan chuanxiong, Japanese angelica sprout, fragrant cyperus powder, white peony root, goji berries, cooked rehmannia root, each 75 grams; Sichuan cow knee (remove stem, wine-soaked), 100 grams; fine cinnamon 9 grams; psoralea fruit 45 grams; rhubarb root 15 grams; green salt 9 grams. Grind into powder. Use 500 grams of old rice, cook into porridge, mix with the powder to form pills. Dry in shade, place in earthenware jar sealed tightly, burn with charcoal or mulberry wood fire until ash remains, crush into powder, store in aluminum box. In the morning, rub the powder on teeth, then rinse and swallow with warm water. This formula nourishes essence and blood, dispels wind and clears heat, strengthens teeth and darkens hair.<Tooth-Cleaning>