It's not possible to kill your tooth pain nerve in 3 seconds permanently because home remedies can't do it and neither can your dentist. If you were looking for instant pain relief from a toothache, it doesn't exist.
However, if you've a little more patience than three seconds... it is possible to deaden the tooth pain nerve. We'll explain what's the fastest way to do it and also review which home remedies are safe and which are dangerous.
Read carefully and proceed even more cautiously.
Impossible to kill tooth pain nerve in 3 seconds
Killing the tooth pain nerve instantly isn't possible because even your dentist who specializes in treating teeth, requires more time than that. Needless to say, home remedies which are less effective than professional dental treatment will also require much more time than 3 seconds to work.
Three reasons why it'll take longer than 3 seconds:
Takes time to reach the nerve of the tooth.
All analgesics need time before they work.
Dental procedures take 30-60 mins on average.
Time to reach tooth nerve
The nerve of your tooth which is the source of your toothache, is located in the center of the tooth. It is protected by a thick layer of dentin and a layer of enamel which is the hardest substance in the human body.
What we're trying to say is that whatever at home remedy or dental treatment you're trying to throw at it, you will need to work through the outer layers first. You need to bypass the dentin and enamel before you can even reach the pulp.
Most home remedies work topically which means you apply it on the outer surface of the tooth. Then you must wait for said remedy to work it's way through all of the outer layers before it even gets to the inner pulp layer.
As you guessed, all of this takes much longer than a mere three seconds.
Analgesic working time
Even the best analgesic such as novocaine or lidocaine which are injectable local anesthetics, will take longer than 3 seconds to kill your toothache. After the injection, it'll take a couple of minutes before you get numb and for you to stop feeling any pain.
Teeth Location | Anesthesia Time |
|---|---|
Upper teeth | 1-2 minutes |
Lower teeth | 3-5 minutes |
As we all know, an injection from your dentist is much more effective than any home remedy and even that takes at least a few minutes to start working. You don't instantly become numb, you have to wait for the medication to take effect.
Dental procedure time
The most infamous way to permanently kill a tooth nerve is via a root canal procedure with your dentist. This endodontic treatment will remove the aching nerve from your tooth forever but it takes at least 45-60 minutes to complete the procedure.
Essentially it doesn't happen instantly nor does it finish in 3 seconds. It takes close to an hour.
Fastest way to kill tooth nerve
Two ways to instantly stop a toothache is to either remove the nerve from the tooth or remove the entire tooth completely. Both ways will eliminate the nerve so that it is no longer able to cause you any pain. You will feel pain relief once you eliminate the source of the nerve pain.
Treatments to stop a toothache immediately:
Root canal. This procedure separates the nerve from the tooth. The tooth stays in the mouth but the nerve gets removed. Once the nerve is gone, you will feel instant pain relief but unfortunately this procedure can only be done by your dentist.
Tooth removal. This is when you take the tooth out completely. There are a lot of ways to remove a tooth but the most common is to do it under local anesthesia with your dentist. That is least painful way to do it since you will be numb for the entire process. Afterwards you will have a hole in your mouth from the missing tooth.
These are the only two ways to get permanent pain relief from a toothache. All other methods will offer temporary pain relief since they do not address the root cause, which is an unhealthy nerve. The nerve needs to be treated directly for pain relief and not just indirectly to alleviate the symptoms.
Although if you were interested, there are ways to calm an irritated tooth nerve. This may or may not work but it is still worth a try.
How to permanently kill a tooth nerve at home.
For a very mild toothache, home remedies can temporarily alleviate the pain. However, if you want to be pain free permanently, you'll still need to see a dentist.
Nonetheless, at home remedies can be useful in holding you over until you can make it to the dentist. Although not all of these home remedies are effective and some of them are outright dangerous. That is why we will go over ones you can use and ones you should avoid.
Note: For severe tooth pain, don't even bother with these because none of them are potent enough to alleviate a throbbing toothache. This is especially true for extreme tooth pain where you can't even sleep.
Home Remedies:
Cold compress. Hold the ice on the affected side for 15 minutes on and 15 minutes off. You can repeat for as many times as needed. The cold will provide a numbing effect for the tooth pain.
Salt water rinsing. Add 1 teaspoon of salt to 8 oz of water and rinse for up to 2 minutes with the solution. Spit it back out afterwards. The salt has a natural antiseptic and anti-inflammatory effect.
Listerine rinsing. Rinse for seconds and according to the manufacturer, Listerine will eliminate 99.9% of the bacteria in your mouth. The Listerine may not cure your toothache but it can prevent it from getting worse because it keeps the bacteria population under control.
Hydrogen peroxide rinsing. Mix 3% hydrogen peroxide with water in a 1:1 ratio and rinse for up to 2 minutes. Studies have shown that 6% hydrogen peroxide can kill up to half of the bacteria in just 15 seconds. This will prevent the bacteria from growing more.
Oregano oil. Apply a drop of oregano oil on a Q-tip and use it to massage the tooth with pain for about 2 minutes. Repeat as many times as needed. Oregano is a powerful bacterial growth inhibitor and has even shown effectiveness for antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Peppermint tea bag. Steep the peppermint tea bag for 5 minutes in boiling water. Let it cool down closer to room temperature and then place the tea bag on the offending tooth. Bite down on the peppermint tea bag for 10 minutes. Studies have shown that the menthol in peppermint has a moderate antibacterial effect.
Garlic. Eat a lot of fresh garlic and it can help prevent infections. Studies have shown that fresh garlic can even work against antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Thyme oil and Clove oil. Apply a drop of the oil to a Q-tip and use it to massage around the offending tooth for up to 2 minutes. Alternatively, you can also add a few drops to a cup of water and use it as a mouth rinse.
All of the above methods will offer momentary pain relief from the tooth nerve pain. It won't kill it permanently but will help temporarily. If the natural remedies don't work you can try an over the counter painkiller instead.
Home remedies to avoid
By all means, do NOT use any of these home remedies that are listed below. They are dangerous and will cause you bodily harm. The most likely outcome will result in you going to the hospital or end up with more pain than before you used it.
Dangerous toothache home remedies:
Crushed raw garlic - can cause a chemical burn or "garlic burn" in your mouth.
Bleach - sodium hypochlorite "accident" as we would call it will land you in the ED.
Brake fluid - has been well documented in community mass poisonings.
Gasoline - this automotive fluid is meant for cars and not your mouth...
Crushed aspirin - potential aspirin burn to the soft oral tissues.
When DIY remedies are ineffective
There are two situations which can render at home remedies to be completely ineffective.
The pain is coming from underneath of a crown tooth.
You've an abscess that is swollen.
If you've any of the above, we recommend seeing a dentist right away and not waste time trying to manage this at home.
Pain under crown
The vast majority of DIY remedies exert their effect via topical application to the tooth. Unfortunately for teeth with crowns on them, the porcelain is impervious to liquids and solid remedies.
Swollen tooth abscess
If your mouth or face is swollen, you need to seek professional help immediately. The situation is too severe for you to even attempt to manage at home.
Typically, swelling won't dissipate without antibiotics or a dental abscess drainage. Everything that you do will be futile. The abscess can grow in size and it can get dangerous so time is of the essence. Seek help right away.
What is the best painkiller for tooth nerve pain?
If you're having a throbbing toothache in the middle of the night when no dentist is open, your only option would be to take over the counter painkillers.
The best painkiller for killing tooth nerve pain would be a combination of ibuprofen and acetaminophen taken simultaneously. You need to take both of them together for the full effect, otherwise you won't get the maximum pain relief benefit.
How to take ibuprofen and acetaminophen to kill the tooth nerve pain:
Take two tablets of extra strength Tylenol (500 mg); Total of 1000 mg every 8 hours.
Take two tablets of Advil (200 mg); Total of 400 mg every 8 hours.
Both need to be taken simultaneously with a glass of water.
Chart below: One study showed how the combination of ibuprofen with acetaminophen was actually superior to both ibuprofen with codeine and also acetaminophen with codeine.
The combination of both medications offered the greatest amount of pain relief approximately 90 minutes after taking it.
Yes, it means that the OTC combination was more effective than opioids.
Studies have also shown that taking both painkillers together provided pain relief that was equivalent to taking narcotics such as oxycodone and hydrocodone. Taking them individually did not provide the desired effects.
Please be aware that you should not take this for longer than one day unless directed by your doctor.
You need to schedule an appointment with your dentist immediately the next day.
This is only meant to get you through the night so that you can get some sleep.
This is great news because if you are having nerve pain coming from your tooth, you most likely already have ibuprofen and acetaminophen at home which you can take. You don't even need a prescription from your dentist to buy both of them if you don't have it at home. This makes it the best home remedy for relief your tooth's nerve pain.
Note: Advil does make an OTC product called Advil Dual Action, which conveniently combines both ibuprofen and acetaminophen into one tablet.
Do antibiotics help?
Taking antibiotics such as amoxicillin can help manage the infection but it will not kill the tooth nerve pain. The reason is because antibiotics are not analgesics so it will not have any pain alleviating effects. In other words, it is NOT a painkiller and won't stop tooth pain.
A classic example would be if you had muscle soreness, a bruise, or a headache. Would you take antibiotics or would you take some ibuprofen? Hopefully its the latter because that is a pain reliever while the former is only meant to kill bacteria with no pain alleviating effects.
Take away
Hopefully that helps explain how you can get some relief from tooth pain. When in doubt, it is always best to see your dentist because most of the home remedies don't solve the root cause.
Home remedies will only offer temporary pain relief meaning the pain will come back within a few hours! Only your dentist can give you a permanent cure and our emergency dentists in long island city can help you to kill your tooth pain nerve.
