What causes dry and bitter mouth?

From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, frequent dry and bitter mouth is mostly caused by internal heat in the body or external wind-cold. At this time, the body's digestive system often has certain abnormalities, which often cause food to remain in the stomach and intestines for a long time, thus forming an odor and causing symptoms of dry and bitter mouth. If there are also some fever, weight loss, or abdominal pain and diarrhea, you need to go to the hospital for examination in time. It may be caused by liver and gallbladder disease. In addition, excessive heart fire and unclean diet can easily cause such symptoms, which are also relatively harmful to the health of the body. Improper conditioning may even cause continuous harm to health.

1. It is caused by stagnant heat in the gallbladder meridian or liver heat transferred to the gallbladder, resulting in the upward flow of gallbladder qi. Bitter taste in the mouth caused by damp-heat in the liver and gallbladder is most likely due to inflammation in the liver and gallbladder, especially in patients with cholecystitis and cholelithiasis. Due to poor gallbladder function, abnormal bile secretion causes a bitter taste in the mouth. People with liver and gallbladder diseases not only have a bitter taste in the mouth, but also have symptoms such as headache and dizziness, flushed face and eyes, impatience and irritability, dry and hard stools, and a red tongue.

2. Exogenous wind-cold evil qi turns into heat and enters the Shaoyang Gallbladder Meridian, often causing symptoms such as bitter taste in the mouth. The Treatise on Febrile Diseases says that “the symptoms of Shaoyang disease are bitter taste in the mouth, dry throat, dizziness, irritability, and nausea.”

3. Bitter taste in the mouth caused by heart fire. This type of bitter taste in the mouth is caused by anxiety, irritability, or staying up late, which leads to indigestion and poor bile excretion. It is often accompanied by flushed face, headache, red eyes, and yellow urine. It is worth noting that psychological bitterness in the mouth is also relatively common. Some people are likely to experience a bitter taste in the mouth due to excessive pressure from work and study, and when they are often angry, irritable, anxious, fearful, uneasy, or suffer from insomnia.

4. Improper diet or lack of necessary exercise after a full meal can also cause bitter taste in the mouth. This is because food stays in the gastrointestinal tract for too long, which easily produces damp heat, resulting in a bitter taste in the mouth and vomiting of bitter water, and is often accompanied by symptoms such as yellow and greasy tongue coating, abdominal distension and pain, and yellow urine.

5. Some patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and certain tumors, often have a bitter taste in the mouth and should be vigilant. People with irregular living habits and lack of sleep often have a bitter taste in their mouth when they wake up in the morning. Severe snoring or sleeping with the mouth open can also easily cause bitter taste in the mouth. Excessive smoking, alcoholism, etc. can also cause bitter taste in the mouth. People with oral inflammation may have a bitter taste in their mouth directly caused by local diseases such as gingivitis and other oral diseases.