Toothache

“Anti-inflammatory analgesics such as ibuprofen and aspirin are best for toothache as the pain is usually caused by swelling,” advises Dr Uchenna Okoye, cosmetic dentist at London Smiling. “But don’t place an aspirin tablet directly on the sore tooth – it’s an acid so will ‘burn’ your gum.”

Or try oil of cloves: “The active ingredient in cloves is eugenol,” explains Dr Okoye, “which has a powerful antibacterial, anti-inflammatory power and can help alleviate toothache.

“Place a whole clove in your mouth near the tooth that hurts and bite down to release the oil in the clove. This produces a bitter taste and the urge is to spit it out but don’t – wait for four minutes then rinse.”

Or apply a few drops of clove oil to a cotton ball and dab it directly to where the tooth hurts.