If you have active cavities and perhaps toothache as well, put 10 or 12 drops in a small amount of warm water (about a mouthful) and swish it around your mouth for 30 seconds or so. Then spit it out. You will notice most of the colour is gone. Do this many times throughout the day.
Soon your toothache will stop and you'll see recalcification on your teeth. Don't stop using the iodine but you will find you can cut back a lot. I usually now use a couple of drops twice a week.
If you have big cavities you should get them fixed when you can afford it. Otherwise, if you forget your iodine for a couple of weeks the cavities will start to bother you again.
I had a dentist remark that I had "many small cavities that have healed over" which surprised him.
I did this iodine treatment for about 25 years, then stopped for years to see what would happen (no problems) and have now started again once a week, two drops.
The only new cavity I've had in more than 40 years is one that was deep inside a gum. I guess the iodine couldn't reach it.
Replied By Om (Hope Bc Canada) on 08/19/2014
Njoy (Canada) --- thank you so much for your post. I will do this definitely. Just have to find iodine. Namaste, OmReplied By Bess (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) on 08/20/2014
Hi Om - There are some suggestions under the heading "Where to Buy Lugol's in Canada" (most pharmacies can order it for you). Cheers, BessReplied By Bess (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) on 08/20/2014
Thanks, Njoy, for the info about iodine and cavities. My husband and I tried it last night and hope to make it a regular habit. I used about 5 drops of 5% Lugol's in 1 ounce of water. It will be interesting to see what happens. Wouldn't it be great (and cheaper) not having to visit the dentist so often ... Cheers, BessReplied By Ranita (Malaysia) on 02/02/2016
Hi Njoy, thanks for the tips. I live in Malaysia and I have the black marks appearing on my teeth, so was wondering what brand of Iodine drops you use. I've been doing oil-pulling for close to 2 years now, and I don't see much improvement, so it could be the brand of coconut oil that I'm using needs to be higher quality.
I saw that some of you have recommended Lugol's 5% solution, but it's looking quite difficult to get here, and shipping is costly too. Would Life Flo Health, Liquid Iodine Plus also work? Looking forward to hearing from you! Thanks.Replied By Maryland (Ca) on 02/15/2016
I am going to try this.... I have a hole in my tooth and now my teeth is getting grey and my breath is starting to smell.Replied By Nepheryte (Malaysia) on 02/26/2016
Hi guys, I tried using iodine (J Crow's Lugol Iodine 5%) to heal my cavities, and I got the worst burning sensation on my tongue. I used 10 drops and swished it in my mouth for about a minute, and by the time I spit it out, my tongue could no longer taste anything. I also had terrible gas, and had to consume large quantities of aloe vera concentrate to soothe my stomach. It's been three days now and my tongue is slowly healing.
On the other hand, I did see a lot of the black stuff from my cavities come out (not everything as I had to spit it out). I don't know why but even taking one drop causes gas in my stomach, so to those using this method, just be cautious please. It does help, but I really wish that Njoy had stated specifically what brand of iodine she was using, and how many percent it was. Using 10 drops of the 5% was hell!Replied By Nepheryte (Malaysia) on 04/10/2016
Writing again as an update, I decided to put the Lugol's 5% iodine on my brush and brush making as little contact with the tongue and walls of my mouth, for about 15-30 seconds. This has helped slightly more in ridding my mouth of the black stuff from my cavities. Not completely healed. I still can't do it every day as suggested as there is a burning sensation. 5 drops a day should be fine, but the 10 being suggested still gives the burning sensation and a very unpleasant taste in my mouth, so hope that those using this method will benefit.Replied By Sheril (Usa) on 08/06/2016
I've been using Iodine for about a year both orally mixed in water and by painting. How we started was by using 2% Lugol's Iodine and then moving up to 5%. As noted by others it does have side effects when first using mainly because Iodine kinda detoxifies your body. I would recommend to start with 3-5 drops of 2% and then increasing the amount slowly or start with 3 drops of 5%. Hope this helps out, cheers :)Replied By Steve (Nevada) on 08/07/2016
I had a similar experience using nascent iodine on some tooth pain I had last night. I put a drop on the few lower front teeth that felt like they were hurting and also swished some colloidal silver. Within 30min pain was gone and hasn't come back.Replied By Zark (Emerald City, The Land Of Oz) on 11/19/2016
Nepheryte, Iodine can temporarily disrupt your gut flora if you swallow it. So take extra care not to swallow any. If you continue to have trouble then do the iodine treatment on an empty tummy, ie. wait at least two hours after a big meal - otherwise it would mix with the food in your stomach and disrupt its fermentation. Are you diluting it enough?Replied By Nepheryte (Malaysia) on 11/20/2016
Hey. No, I didn't know that I had to dilute it. How exactly do I use this for cavities? I actually stopped using it because it was so unpleasant.Replied By Eliza G. (San Francisco, California) on 01/17/2017
Oh my God! Thank you so much for sharing this remedy and your experience. I am going to try it and hopefully this is going to work for me as well as it has for you for 40+ years. I've been doing coconut oil pulling, but it is not having an effect on my cavities although it is making my gums very healthy, so I love oil pulling, too.Replied By Eliza (San Francisco, California) on 01/19/2017
You mention that if you have big cavities, do not stop using the solution. My question is does this solution and frequent use every day reverse and heal big cavities? Are you saying this only for those with toothaches with large cavities? Thanks for your prompt answers.Replied By Stephen Wolner Dds (New York, Ny) on 06/18/2017
Every dentist should disinfect each patient's mouth before a cleaning.
The best and most effective way to do this is to swab all teeth and gums with 2% tincture of iodine and leave in place for 30 seconds. This form of iodine will kill S.Mutans (the bacteria responsible for decay) and in studies by P. Caulfield it takes about 4-6 months for recolonization to occur. This research followed children for several years and in double blind studies, it reduced the formation of decay by about 80%. This technique should be just as effective in adults.
Replied By Angela (Uk) on 07/24/2017
When you wrote about swabbing Iodine on the teeth, what do you use?
I tried it with a cotton bud and the Iodine seemed to stay in the bud and not transfer to the teeth/gum line.
I also have a 2mm black cavity on the side of my rear molar which is only visible with a mirror, I would like to place a drop of 3% Lugol's Iodine in the cavity but it is very difficult to do because of the position of the cavity/caries.
Replied By Stephen Wolner (New York Ny) on 01/04/2018
The best iodine is 2% tincture which can be found in any drugstore. Using a q-tip just dab a drop anywhere on a tooth. This iodine has a very low surface tension which means it will run into every nook and cranny. Studies have shown that 2% tincture will kill S. Mutans and keep it under control for about 4-6 months.Replied By Bells (Texas, Usa) on 02/23/2018
It might be beneficial to mention that most forms of liquid Iodine can be toxic if swallowed. If Iodine must be consumed, Potassium Iodine is the best way to ingest Iodine without fear of toxicity. Please be careful when using this method as swallowing enough Iodine can be fatal and has been used as a method of poison in the past.Replied By Phil (Tn) on 04/01/2018
You must dilute lugol's before using. One drop of 5% to 4 oz water before swishing.Replied By Midas (Canada) on 11/09/2018
Sounds like a Candida reaction as waves of them die. It's a good thing. The pain - that's detox. Wouldn't surprise me if other systems were inflamed a little, that you got aches and flu like stiffness.
Keep at it - but don't take so much so fast. Atomic iodine moves very quickly through your capillaries into your main blood system. Under your tongue especially.Replied By LISA (CO) on 12/14/2023
I had a wisdom tooth come in and it revealed a big black cavity on it. I was in no pain because it had not decayed all the way through. I read on this site about swishing ten drops of store bought iodine mixed with a little warm water. I did that every day for two and a half weeks and the next morning, I got the flashlight and checked: The cavity was almost completely gone! I kept doing this treatment for a few more days and there is no more sign of a cavity. I have kept this regimen up just in case.