Dentist Edmond: Educating About Dry Mouth

There are rare occasions when dental patients complain about having dry mouth and for that reason, our dentist in Edmond wanted to use this blog post to share with our readers about this issue. Believe it or not, dry mouth is a more common concern than most people think. The basic underlying problem of dry mouth is the result of one’s mouth not creating enough saliva. Of course, we all need saliva to prevent infection, to moisten, to cleanse our mouths, and to help digest food. As you can imagine, it’s not very comfortable when you aren’t making enough saliva that is necessary. There may be several reasons as to why you’re experiencing this problem.

To help you pinpoint why you may be having dry mouth, also known as Xerostomia, our dentist in Edmond gathered this list of causes. You may have dry mouth if:

• You have a medical condition such as Sjögren’s syndrome, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, anemia, cystic fibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, and mumps.
• You are taking a medication with the side effect of dry mouth which can include drugs to treat obesity, acne, epilepsy, hypertension (diuretics), diarrhea, nausea, psychotic disorders, urinary incontinence, asthma, depression, anxiety, pain, allergies, and colds. It can also be caused by muscle relaxants and sedatives.
• You have damage due to medical treatments such as radiation to the head and neck, or from using other forms of chemotherapy treatments for cancer.

In conjunction with the side effects from medication, medical conditions, or medical treatments our dentist in Edmond feels that it is important to note that tobacco use and other usage of illegal substances can cause severe dry mouth.

Our dentist in Edmond will tell you that treating dry mouth is vital as a long-term lack of moisture significantly increases the risk of gum disease and thrush. Keeping yourself hydrated and using fluoride toothpaste and mouthwashes is recommended to correct your dry mouth symptoms. We could also prescribe an oral rinse or medication that encourages saliva production.

If you’d like to schedule an appointment with our dentist in Edmond, please feel free to contact Philip Gray DDS by clicking here.