This article contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking on a link I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Feel like your face doubled or even tripled in size due to all the swelling that is happening? It is a common case for people who suffer from tooth abscess, and the swelling usually starts to occur while you are asleep. If you have been diligently taking your antibiotic medications and feel no difference in terms of the facial swelling, here are some remedies you can apply at home.

It can take from several hours to even a few days for the swelling to disappear. It all depends on the type of abscess you are suffering from, as well as the severity of the abscess. If the pain is unbearable, you might want to set up an emergency appointment with the dentist. It may be the case that you’ll need the abscessed tooth to be taken out in order to reduce the facial swelling. In this article, we examine several home remedies you can apply to gradually reduce the pain. Note that these remedies aren’t permanent solutions, and will only reduce the pain temporarily.

#1 Gargle your mouth with lukewarm salt water few times a day. Salt water can be seen as a natural form of antibacterial solution. Since tooth abscess occurs due to the presence of nasty bacteria in your mouth, salt water can help reduce the swelling by killing some of the bacteria that is present in your mouth. You could also use antiseptic mouthwash, but some people have reported experiencing further pain when using mouthwash solution. Therefore, use either solution with caution.

#2 The antibiotic medication you have been prescribed may not be working for you. In such a case, you might want to contact your dentist and ask if there is any other antibiotic medication you can take that will reduce the swelling.

There are several home remedies you might also want to try that reduce the swelling. For example, some people felt a lot better after drinking natural cranberry juice (no sugar added) on a regular basis. Make sure you get the green light from the dentist before you try any remedies though.

#3 Never pop the abscess. That’ll just make the problem even worse. The dentist will take care of that by doing a root canal procedure. If you pop the abscess on your own, you increase the chances of having the infection spread to other parts of your jaw, and that will just increase the swelling.

#4 Get your vitamin intake from natural foods. vitamin D is known to have anti-inflammatory properties so it will serve you well if you eat food that are rich in vitamin D such as fish, mushrooms, and eggs.

#4 Tea tree oil seems to work well for people who suffer from gum diseases. It is known to be a very effective killer of bacteria so it could definitely aid your recovery process. One of the best ways to use tea tree oil is by applying one drop on top of the toothpaste. You don’t want to consume the tea tree oil because it could irritate your stomach.

Although the remedies above may reduce the swelling, it won’t get rid of it altogether. If the abscessed tooth has to be removed in order to get rid of the pus, do so quickly because that will do a lot in reducing the facial swelling.