It’s not just fresh breath that you will get each time you toss your favorite breath mint in your mouth — you will also end up ingesting each and every single ingredient in the product, majority of which are complete no-no’s! Fortunately, coming up with breath mints that are devoid of unwanted ingredients is actually a very simple task.
Most breath mints on the current market are loaded with sugar. Isn’t it funny that a product that’s designed to eradicate bad breath is the very thing that can promote the growth of bad breath-causing bacteria in your mouth?
While there are sugar-free variants out there that help reduce the caloric content of every breath mint, the fact is a lot of artificial sweeteners added to these products have all sorts of health repercussions, according to scientists. Having fresh breath is pointless if you are putting your wellbeing on the line!
Sugar and sugar substitutes are not the only ingredients that give a lot of breath mints out there a tainted reputation. A quick scan on the list of ingredients on the packaging will immediately reveal the fact that your favorite breath mints contain artificial colorants, artificial flavorings and artificial preservatives.
Is it possible to have one’s breath freshened in a snap without having to fear for one’s health and life in exchange? Well, such is very much possible — provided that you are willing to devote a little of your time and energy to whipping up breath mints from scratch, with your own two hands!
Without further ado, here’s how you can produce all-natural breath mints that are very good at getting rid of that reeking breath sans flushing down some very questionable ingredients down your throat:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of raw honey
- 2 teaspoons of grated fresh ginger root
- 1/2 teaspoon of bentonite clay
- 10 drops of lemon essential oil
- 10 drops of peppermint essential oil
- Baking soda
Materials:
- Silicone candy mold or parchment paper
- Candy thermometer
- Cold water
- Small saucepan
- Small mixing bowl
- Large strainer
- Small airtight container or Ziploc
Directions:
- In a small saucepan, combine raw honey, grated fresh ginger root, bentonite clay, lemon essential oil and peppermint essential oil.
- Before you switch on the stove, make sure that your candy mold is right next to you. If you don’t have a candy mold, simply grab a large tray and line it with parchment paper. Coat it with a little cooking spray.
- Using medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Start stirring all of the ingredients with a whisk as soon as the raw honey becomes thinner.
- After a while, bubbles will form. Immediately take the saucepan out of the heat and continue stirring with a whisk. Once the bubbles are gone, take it back to the heat.
- Repeat the previous steps again and again until the mixture is at 300°F. Needless to say, you need to constantly check the temperature with a candy thermometer.
- Once the mixture is at 300°F, switch off the heat. Using a spoon, carefully transfer the mixture into your candy mold. If you’re using parchment paper, neatly place dollops of the mixture on it.
- Never stash your homemade breath mints in the fridge to speed up to cooling and hardening process. They are best hardened very slowly.
- After a few hours, grab a small mixing bowl. Fill about a quarter of the said bowl with baking soda. Baking soda will be used to coat your breath mints to keep them from sticking to one another.
- Place your hardened breath mints in the mixing bowl with baking soda. With the use of your hands or a wooden spoon, gently give the contents a stir to have every breath mint coated.
- Transfer to a large sieve and shake it back and forth. Doing this will eliminate as much baking soda as possible. Afterwards, store your homemade breath mints to a small airtight container or Ziploc.
