Dry Mouth

Saliva is helpful as it provides a mechanical cleansing action and removes debris from the oral cavity.

The common reason for dry mouth remains to be intake of drugs for certain ailments.

If one feels the need to moisten the mouth frequently or sip water often, feel dryness of mouth at mealtime, have difficulty in eating dry foods and one has bad breath, it is likely that person is suffering from a condition of dry mouth.

Well, it does appear trivial that the lack of salivation is an issue as such but saliva, the clear, watery and sometimes viscous fluid produced by the glands around the tongue has digestive enzymes and lubricating fluids that moistens the area. Saliva is further helpful as it has selective antimicrobial activity and provides a mechanical cleansing action and removes debris from the oral cavity and maintains the integrity of the mucus lining of the mouth. Xerostomia as it is termed means the dryness of the mouth which can cause quite a few health problems either to do with the nutrition, dental health and sometimes even psychological health.

It is likely to cause a constant sore throat, burning sensation in the throat, difficulty in speaking or swallowing, hoarseness of voice and dryness of the nasal passages. If 10 patients of gum disease are to be examined it is likely that at least three of them would suffer from a dry mouth. This condition causes increased deposition of plaque, rapid deterioration of fabric of the teeth leading to caries and increased predisposition to the fungal infection of the lining of the tongue and oral cavity. Needless to say bad breath sets in when the patient and his family tend to observe the change. Such people are also more prone to aphthous ulcers. Denture wearers develop problems with denture retention and are more likely to develop sores.

Ageing is one of the common causes of dry mouth while other auto immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis also have dryness of the oral cavity as a feature along with other symptoms. People suffering from nutritional disturbances, endocrine disorders like decreased thyroid function, Bells Palsy where the facial nerve is affected, decreased production of the stomach enzymes, insufficient water intake can all cause this problem. But the common reason for this problem remains to be intake of drugs for certain ailments. Once such a change is noticed it would be well advised to consult a physician who would ascertain that and advice changes in usage of such medication. Depression, anxiety, stress and fear have all been known to contribute to dryness. In patients suffering with nasal problem due to blockage of the nose if they tend to breathe through the mouth it would lead to dryness too and smoking and alcohol have always known to lead to oral problems.

Individuals with this condition would do well to avoid sugary foods, acidic beverages, dry spicy foods apart from too hot or cold foods. Since smoking directly causes dryness while alcohol saps away the hydration of the body it is advisable to do away with them.

Homoeopathic medicine has good remedies to either increasing the secretion of saliva or restoring it once the cause is ascertained. If it is an infection it would be subdued too. Belladonna and Bryonia are good re medies which help control the glandular inflammation, Arsenic is a remedy when the elderly are prone, Apis, Lycopodium and Staphysagria have been prescribed when the dental problems coexist or caus ed due to dryness. Nux moschata probably helps any kind of dryness and gives palliative relief while Pulsatilla and Antim crud are indicated to get rid of infections secondary to this condition.