11 Treatment Options
How do I get rid of my white tongue? If it doesn’t resolve within a couple of weeks, you can get rid of a white tongue with lifestyle and dietary changes, natural remedies, or prescription medication.
1. Good Oral Hygiene
Sometimes, good oral hygiene is all you need to treat white tongue. Do all of the following to maximize your oral hygiene routine:
- Brush your teeth twice a day, but not right after a meal when there are still acids on your teeth. Wait at least 45 minutes after your last bite and rinse with water before you brush.
- Brush in gentle circles at a 45° angle towards your gums to reach plaque hiding along your gum line. Don’t brush too hard, or you could hurt your gums.
- Brush with soft bristles, not hard bristles, which could harm your teeth. Soft toothbrushes are always better than abrasive, stiff brushes.
- Use electric toothbrushes, which tend to remove more plaque than manual toothbrushes. Manual toothbrushes can remove just as much plaque buildup, but only with perfect technique every time.
- Ditch conventional toothpaste. Toothpaste is mostly optional, and most fluoride toothpastes (and even fluoride-free toothpastes) are not good for your holistic health anyway. However, certain formulations should cater to your unique situation. I formulated Revitin to address some of the most common missing elements in “natural” toothpaste.
- Floss properly to reduce interdental plaque and lower your risk of cavities, gingivitis, and a white tongue.
- Air dry your toothbrush with the brush head facing the ceiling. This method lowers the risk of bacteria growing on your brush. Also, make sure to keep your toothbrush far from flushing toilets.
2. Regular Hydration
Drinking plenty of water prevents dehydration, promotes saliva production, and helps wash away food debris that could build up on your tongue surface.
3. Limited Tobacco and Alcohol Use
Don’t drink alcohol, and don’t smoke tobacco or tobaccoless products. Drinking, smoking, and even vaping lead to serious medical conditions and significantly damage oral health, including white tongue.
4. Tongue Scraping
Gently scraping your tongue should reduce the harmful bacterial load on your tongue’s surface. Don’t scrape too hard since that can cause unnecessary bleeding from your taste buds or the small bumps over your entire tongue.
If oral thrush is the cause of the white coating on your tongue, scraping away the white patches may reveal tender, inflamed areas prone to bleeding. Using a tongue scraper may better remove bad breath molecules and white tongue-causing bacteria than brushing your tongue.
5. Baking Soda
Harmful bacteria and yeasts are a common cause of white tongue. Baking soda is naturally antifungal and antibacterial, so it should help clean your mouth of harmful bacteria and yeasts, without any crazy side effects.
6. Oral Probiotics
Oral probiotics may help balance your oral microbiome (the good bacteria in your mouth) and fight the root causes of white tongue.
This 2019 study shows that probiotics have a beneficial effect against oral thrush, one of the most common causes of white tongue.
For the best results, use a good chewable oral probiotic, not just probiotics for the gut.
Many probiotic foods may also support your oral microbiome:
- Kefir
- Kimchi
- Kombucha
- Miso
- Natto
- Pickles
- Sauerkraut
- Sourdough bread
- Tempeh
- Yogurt
7. Green Tea
Unsweetened green tea and green tea extract are widely believed to be antimicrobial, antifungal, antioxidant, antitumor, and more. This means that green tea is excellent for holistic health, including the health of your mouth.
Green tea may be effective against oral thrush and white tongue, and its side effects (namely, possible caffeine jitters) are generally preferable to harsher alternatives such as sodium hypochlorite.
8. Oil Pulling
Coconut oil pulling is when you swish coconut oil around your mouth for a couple of minutes, then spit it out in the trash. (It’s a liquid in your mouth but a solid at room temperature.)
Oil pulling can reduce the harmful bacteria load in your oral cavity, which may address the root cause of your white tongue. A recent scientific review confirms that oil pulling helps prevent oral thrush and dry mouth – two common causes of white tongue.
9. Aloe Vera Rinse
An aloe vera mouth rinse could help treat white tongue. A 2020 study shows that an aloe vera ethanol extract is an effective antifungal agent. Antifungals can be helpful against white tongue root causes of white tongue, especially a potential fungal infection.
10. Supplements
There are several dietary supplements that should support your oral health and decrease your risk of white tongue:
- Garlic extract contains compounds that may be antimicrobial, antitumor, and good for your heart. A 2021 study published in Antioxidants concludes that garlic is “safe and effective in treatment of various oral [diseases],” including the underlying causes of white tongue.
- Oregano oil has antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiviral, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. It seems effective at treating oral thrush, a leading cause of white tongue. Oregano essential oil should probably not be consumed, as it’s so concentrated. But oregano oil extract should be perfectly safe.
- Curcumin is the concentrated form of turmeric. According to a 2025 study, “Curcumin has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, inhibits collagenase, antifungal, and wound healing properties” that improve oral health outcomes, including leukoplakia, a disease whose main characteristic is white patches on the tongue.
11. Medications
Prescription medications may be needed to treat specific cases of white tongue.
If oral thrush is the cause of your white tongue, consider an antifungal, such as a lozenge, pill, mouthwash, or natural antifungal. Talk to your doctor about prescription options to treat oral thrush, preferably antifungal medication with few to no side effects.
If your tongue is white due to syphilis, prescription penicillin may eliminate the bacterial root cause of your white tongue.
