What Can Expired Mouthwash Be Used For? Of course, there are so many household things you can use your expired mouthwash for. Why waste your expired mouth when you can actually put it to other good use?
Mouthwash, like all other medicines, beverages, and foods, has an expiration date. The expiration dates on oral care items are there to let you know when the active ingredients in your toothpaste or mouthwash start to degrade and become less effective.
Mouthwash that has reached its expiration date is useless to your oral health. So, while expired mouthwash will not poison or injure you, it will lose its beneficial effects on your oral health at some stage. Cavities, gum disease, and other oral health issues can not be addressed by rinsing with expired mouthwash. Using out-of-date mouthwash is a waste of time and effort!
However, some mouthwash and toothpaste usually continue to be of good benefits 6 months after the manufacturer’s expiration date. Though, this can vary depending on the product. Alcohol-based mouthwashes last longer than non-alcohol mouthwashes until they’ve expired.
Today, I’m going to show some beneficial uses of expired mouthwash. You really don’t have to waste your hard-earned money…
Top 9 Uses Of Expired Mouthwash
Expired mouthwash can be used to:
Treat Athlete’s Foot And Nail Fungus
The use of mouthwash for a foot soak is now a common home remedy for conditions such as athlete’s foot and nail fungus. Some mouthwash contains alcohol, thymol, and methyl salicylate which helps to prevent fungal infections. These chemicals are still active in most expired mouthwash and therefore can be used for a foot soak. If you notice a reduction in the alcohol content, simply increase the quantity.
Recommended: Can You Use Any Mouthwash For Foot Soak?
For prevention, put a little mouthwash on a cotton ball or cotton swab and dab the affected areas. To destroy the bacteria and fungi that cause athlete’s foot, soak your feet in a mixture of one part mouth (e.g. Listerine) and two parts warm water.
Get Rid Of Dandruff
This home remedy is only for dandruff caused by an overgrowth of Malassezia, a yeast-like fungus that lives on most adult scalps. When there are too many, it can irritate the scalp and encourage the growth of extra skin cells. Eucalyptol, an antifungal chemical that is still active in most expired mouthwashes, can help prevent and get rid of Malassezia from the scalp.
According to LifeHacker, keep the flakes away with one part mouthwash, one part witch hazel, and 8 parts water. After you’ve washed your hair, spritz the mixture on your roots and scalp. Please do not do this if you have some open wounds or bruises on your scalp.
Recommended: 5 Best Mouthwash For Foot Soak
Reduce Armpit Odor
According to KilmerHouse.com, Listerine is a non-toxic, non-irritant, non-escharotic, absolutely safe, and strictly professional mouthwash with antiseptic, prophylactic, and deodorant properties. This mouthwash contains antiseptic ingredients such as Eucalyptol, Methyl Salicylate, and Thymol, which kill bacteria under your arms and effectively stop the stink caused by sweat.
To try this, soak a cotton ball in the expired mouthwash and wipe your underarms several times before applying deodorant.
Clean Your Toilet
Expired mouthwash will not remove stains, but it will disinfect your toilet bowl. Though the expired mouth may no longer be very active, it can still kill weak germs and give your toilet a better fragrance.
Simply clean the basin with your toilet brush after adding half a cup of mouthwash to the toilet bowl. Spitting your morning mouth swish into the toilet bowl can also help disinfect your toilet.
Recommended: 7 Dangerous Toilet infections, Their Symptoms, And Preventions
Keep Flowers Fresh
Forget about aspirin, pennies, and other old folk tales about how to keep flowers alive. Mouthwash has antibacterial properties, making it ideal for extending the life of your bouquet.
In doing this I believe expired mouthwash will be more suitable than good mouthwash since the quality of the ingredients has been reduced to some extent making it a little mild for the flowers. However, you can dilute your unexpired mouthwash before using it on the flowers. A capful is recommended for minimum effectiveness.
Get Rid Of Ticks On Pets
Are you having challenges getting rid of stubborn ticks on your pets? Get the expired mouthwash and soak an old tea towel in it and place it over the infected area for a minute and then remove it. The tick will untangle itself and fall off.
Freshen Laundry
Have you ever found that after going through the washing machine, your clothes have a stale, musty odor? “Water that has not fully drained out of your machine after a few wash cycles will be left behind, where they remain and produce bad odor,” says Clorox’s Mary Gagliardi aka Dr. Laundry.
Recommended: Can Mouthwash Be Used As a Disinfectant?
Add a cup of the alcohol-based, sugar-free expired mouthwash to your next cycle to kill germs for good. To avoid staining your clothing, make sure the mouthwash doesn’t contain any artificial colors.
The mouthwash will not only destroy germs in your clothing but will also clean your washing machine and remove the stale, musty odor caused by the sitting water.
Emergency Hand Sanitizer
Forgot your hand sanitizer? Expired Mouthwash can come in handy when you need hand sanitizer as quickly as possible.
Fill a travel spray bottle halfway with the expired mouthwash to make your own hand sanitizer. To avoid sticking, make sure your mouthwash is alcohol-based and sugar-free.
Disinfect Your Toothbrush
Toothbrushes also need to be cleaned! If not washed regularly, they can harbor a variety of germs, not just from your mouth but also from the toilet.
Dip the toothbrush in a small cup filled with the expired mouthwash and leave it there for 10 minutes to clean them. Give it a good rinsing, and it’ll be clean and fresh as new. Make sure the mouth contains alcohol and that the alcohol is still active to some extent.
Recommended: 6 Major Causes of Toothache, Their Solution And Prevention
Conclusion
There are so many uses of expired mouthwash that are not listed in this article. The expired mouth is no longer 100% active against bacteria and germs in the mouth but it can still be used for so many things.
Do not use expired mouthwash on open cuts or wounds. Use it externally to disinfect objects and surfaces, reduce bad odors, repel insects, freshen laundry, etc.
What other uses of expired mouthwash can you think of? Tell us using the comment box below.