Clove paste is one of the most effective home remedies for temporary toothache relief, and it takes about two minutes to make with ingredients you may already have in your kitchen. The active compound in cloves works by blocking pain signals in the nerve fibers around your tooth, functioning similarly to the numbing gels dentists use before injections.
Why Clove Paste Works on Tooth Pain
Cloves contain a natural compound called eugenol, which makes up 70 to 90 percent of clove oil by weight. Eugenol blocks the same sodium channels in nerve cells that synthetic local anesthetics target. It essentially stops pain signals from traveling along the nerve that supplies your teeth and lower jaw. A clinical trial testing a homemade clove gel against 20% benzocaine (the active ingredient in most over-the-counter oral pain gels like Orajel) found no significant difference in pain scores between the two. Both reduced pain significantly more than a placebo.
Simple Clove Paste Recipe
You have two options depending on what’s in your pantry: ground cloves or whole cloves.
Using Ground Cloves
Mix half a teaspoon of ground clove powder with a few drops of olive oil or coconut oil. Stir until you get a thick, spreadable paste. You want it dense enough to stay in place on your tooth without immediately dissolving in saliva. If it’s too runny, add a pinch more powder. If it’s too thick to spread, add another drop of oil.
Using Whole Cloves
If you only have whole cloves, crush three or four in a mortar and pestle (or press them with the flat side of a knife on a cutting board) until they form a coarse powder. Then mix with a few drops of carrier oil the same way. Whole cloves that haven’t been sitting in your spice rack for years will have a higher eugenol content and produce a stronger paste.
Using Clove Oil
If you have store-bought clove essential oil, dilute it before putting it in your mouth. Mix one or two drops of clove oil into a teaspoon of coconut oil or olive oil. Undiluted clove oil is highly concentrated and can damage soft tissue. Lab studies show clove oil becomes toxic to cells at concentrations as low as 0.03%, and the damage increases sharply from there. The carrier oil dilutes the eugenol to a safer level while still delivering pain relief.
How to Apply It
Start by rinsing your mouth with warm salt water to clear away any food debris around the painful tooth. Then use a clean finger or a small cotton ball to place a pea-sized amount of paste directly on and around the affected tooth. Press it gently against the area where you feel the most pain.
Leave the paste in place for 15 to 20 minutes. You’ll likely feel a warming or mild tingling sensation, which is normal. If you feel a burning sensation, remove the paste immediately and rinse with water. You’re using too much clove oil or too little carrier oil. After 20 minutes, spit out the paste and rinse. You can reapply two to three times a day as needed, but this is a temporary measure. The paste masks pain; it doesn’t treat whatever is causing it.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
The biggest mistake is applying undiluted clove oil directly to your gums. Because eugenol is so potent at low concentrations, pure clove oil can cause chemical burns on the soft tissue inside your mouth, leaving you with a new source of pain on top of the toothache. Always dilute it in a carrier oil first.
Another common error is swallowing the paste or using excessive amounts. A small dab targeted at the tooth is all you need. Spreading large quantities across your gums provides no additional benefit and increases your exposure to eugenol unnecessarily. Also avoid pressing the paste into an open cavity or broken tooth where it could reach deeper tissue.
Who Should Not Use Clove Paste
Clove paste is not appropriate for everyone. Children under two years old should not use it, and it should never be applied to teething gums in infants. If you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, avoid clove oil remedies unless your doctor has specifically approved it. People with bleeding disorders or anyone taking blood thinners like warfarin should also skip this remedy, as eugenol can increase anti-clotting effects. And if you have a known allergy to cloves or Peru balsam, avoid contact entirely.
Signs Your Toothache Needs More Than Home Treatment
Clove paste can buy you comfort for a few hours or a couple of days while you arrange a dental visit, but certain symptoms mean the underlying problem has become urgent. Fever combined with facial swelling suggests an infection that may be spreading beyond the tooth into your jaw or neck. Difficulty breathing or swallowing is an emergency, as these indicate the infection may be compressing your airway. In either case, go to an emergency room if you can’t reach a dentist the same day. A toothache that wakes you up at night, causes throbbing that doesn’t respond to any pain relief, or produces a foul taste from draining pus also warrants prompt professional care.