What Causes Dry Mouth?

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Saliva is an important part of preventing decay and infections in your mouth.  When your mouth is too dry, it invites harmful cultures of bacteria and fungi to flourish throughout your teeth and gums.  It is for this reason that our Federal Way family dentistry wants you to be on the lookout for dry mouth, and be mindful of the many forces that may contribute to this unfortunate condition.

  • Smoking and tobacco-chewing can dry out your mouth.

  • Chronic mouth-breathing releases moisture from your mouth faster than it can be replaced.

  • Many medications, both prescription and nonprescription, have dry mouth as a side effect.  This also includes many sedatives, muscle relaxants, and antihistamines.

  • A lot of diseases cause dry mouth.  Common examples include AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, anemia, hypertension, mumps, rheumatoid arthritis, and strokes.

  • Certain medical treatments can cause damage to your salivary glands, like chemotherapy.

  • An injury to the head or neck area may result in nerve damage that causes dry mouth.

  • If you are dehydrated, your body is likely to sacrifice saliva in favor of more important functions.  Dehydration can come from fever, excessive sweating, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of blood, or simply a failure to drink enough water.

Talk to your dentist to learn more about dry mouth, and how you can get rid of it.

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