What causes dry tongue

Some people will find that their tongue is dry, especially in summer, when people often feel dry mouth and tongue. This may be because the weather is hot in the summer and people sweat, but they don’t drink water often, which leads to dehydration in the body and a feeling of dry mouth and tongue. Apart from this, there are many other reasons that can cause dry tongue. Let’s take a look at what causes dry tongue.

1. What medicine should I take for a dry and astringent tongue?

Dry tongue is usually caused by zinc deficiency. Diseases such as dry and astringent tongue make the tongue feel very dry. This may be due to a lack of trace elements and vitamins. It is recommended that you take zinc gluconate orally, or take vitamin B at the same time. You must drink plenty of water and eat more vegetables. Don't eat MSG or chicken essence because they may increase the excretion of zinc. Zinc deficiency can lead to this disease.

Causes of dry tongue:

① Climate factors;

②Physiological factors: The lips have no sebaceous glands or sweat glands, so they are very prone to dryness and peeling.

③Nutritional factors: such as lack of certain nutrients.

④ Bad habits: such as licking lips frequently (lips are dry and uncomfortable, so many people will subconsciously lick their lips, but the result is often that the more they lick, the drier their lips become, and the drier they become, the more they lick, forming a vicious cycle, resulting in the medical term "tongue licking dermatitis"); staying up late and not getting enough sleep; drinking too little water.

⑤Chemical stimulation.

To avoid chapped lips, you should prevent and treat the causes of chapped lips:

① Keep the indoor air moist, and try not to be exposed to cold and dry wind for too long. You can wear a mask to block it.

② Pay attention to drinking more water or soup to keep your skin moisturized.

③ Avoid spicy fried foods, eat more cool and moisturizing vegetables and fruits, and you can supplement with appropriate amounts of vitamins A and B6, zinc gluconate or cod liver oil.

④ Apply some protective lip balm on your lips. If your lips are already chapped, wash them with warm water and apply a layer of glycerin.

Possible causes of dry tongue

Physiological dry mouth is often caused by drinking too little water, eating too much salty food and a lot of dry food, after strenuous exercise and excessive sweating, and neurological disorders. Menopause, stress, anxiety and other mental factors can also cause dry mouth.

Normal elderly people may experience varying degrees of dry mouth due to atrophy of glands in the oral mucosa and reduced saliva secretion. Pathological dry mouth occurs after a cold, massive vomiting, diarrhea, and high fever. Patients with rhinitis, sinusitis, and deviated nasal septum often experience dry mouth due to poor nasal ventilation and mouth breathing, which causes evaporation of water in the oral cavity.

Asthma patients have dry mouth due to excessive evaporation of water from the respiratory tract due to faster and deeper breathing. Patients with sleep apnea due to various reasons have dry mouth after getting up in the morning because of mouth breathing at night.

Dry mouth caused by diabetes is the most familiar to everyone. Patients may experience dry mouth and thirst due to increased plasma osmotic pressure and polyuria caused by increased blood sugar.

Some pituitary tumors can cause dry mouth. The most severe dry mouth occurs in people with Sjögren's syndrome. Because the immune response destroys the parotid glands, salivary glands in the mouth, lacrimal glands and glands in the nasal mucosa, the patient suffers from unbearable dry mouth, dry eyes and dry nose. In severe cases, it is difficult to turn the tongue and close the eyes.

There are so many reasons for dry mouth, some are caused by bad diet, psychological and lifestyle habits, some are caused by diseases; some can be relieved in a short time, while others bother patients for a long time.

To relieve the discomfort of dry mouth, people often drink water continuously. This can provide relief for those who drink too little water or lose too much water, but it is unlikely to be effective for dry mouth caused by various diseases.

On the contrary, drinking too much water often increases the burden on the kidneys, which is especially inappropriate for the elderly and those with poor renal function. Therefore, we would like to remind everyone that if dry mouth cannot be relieved in a short period of time, you should go to the hospital for a comprehensive examination.