How to Cure Dry Mouth

A reference article on How to Cure Dry Mouth

About thirty million Americans suffer from a condition called xerostomia or dry mouth. While dry mouth is sometimes associated with certain diseases like diabetes or medication side effects, it also can be due to simple things like not drinking enough water or sleeping with your mouth open. People taking prescription analgesics, antihistamines, decongestants, hypertension drugs, diuretics and a wide variety of other medications frequently experience excessive dryness of the mouth, particularly at the beginning of the drug regimen.

Dry mouth is simply insufficient saliva production. Saliva plays many functions in maintaining health. Saliva washes away food particles that adhere to teeth, causing halitosis and cavities. It lubricates your tongue, pharynx and lips, all essential for speaking and swallowing. Saliva contains the enzyme amylase that initiates the digestion of starch even before it enters the stomach. Finally, saliva helps maintain your oral pH within a healthy range, thereby preventing the growth of fungal infections like thrush.

Best Ways to Cure Dry Mouth

Saliva plays an extremely important function in the prevention of gum disease so chronic dry mouth is a health threat. Fortunately there are many ways to treat and cure dry mouth.

Change Medications

If your dry mouth symptoms are a medication side effect, speak to your physician to see if you can substitute a medication not associated with dry mouth but with the same health benefits as the one you're taking.

Sugar Free Chewing Gum and Candies

Chewing sugar free gum can stimulate saliva production tenfold according to the American Dental Association (ADA). Saliva flow stimulated in this fashion contains higher concentrations of bicarbonate than other types of saliva. Bicarbonate plays a critical role in the prevention of plaque formation.

Sucking on sugar free candies, on the other hand, may be problematic: Candies only moisten your mouth for a short time so the dry mouth cure is more temporary than it is when you chew gum. Additionally, the artificial sweeteners in many sugar free candies may cause intestinal upset, particularly if you are eating a lot of them.

Increased Fluid Intake

The ADA also recommends that people experiencing dry mouth increase their fluid intake, taking small frequent sips of water and nibbling on ice chips. Avoid drinking coffee: Caffeine is a diuretic which increases dry mouth symptoms. Smoking cigarettes also aggravates dry mouth.

Saliva Substitutes

More than half a dozen types of artificial saliva products are on the market, available both as prescription and over-the-counter medications. Saliva substitutes come as oral solutions, lozenges, sprays and swabs and youíre advised not to take anything in by mouth for at least 15 minutes after you finish using one.

Other Prescription Medications

There are also prescription medications your doctor can recommend to relieve the symptoms of dry mouth. These medications work by stimulating saliva glands and in general are used only when the underlying cause of dry mouth is a medical condition like Sjˆgren's syndrome or diabetes that isnít controlled.