Dry mouth or cotton mouth is medically called xerostomia and is a condition when the production of saliva in the mouth slows down or completely stops. It’s a condition that should be taken seriously, as saliva plays a very important part in helping us talk, chew and also washing food particles from the mouth, thus combating cavities. Xerostomia is not a disease but a symptom of some other medical problem. This problem causes an inability to speak and swallow. Dry mouth is caused by dehydration, anxiety, over consumption of alcohol, and excessive breathing through mouth. There are several medications that cause xerostomia. The symptoms of xerostomia include dry lips, lips sores, excessive thirst, raw tongue, sore throat, bad breath, and dry nasal passages.
To bring the saliva production back to normal, drinking ample water and consuming moistened food would definitely help. Carry a bottle of water and keep sipping on it especially if you are going out in the sun. Along with drinking lots of water, you can suck on ice cubes and rinse your mouth with a pinch of baking soda added to a cup of water. Also, one must avoid smoking and consuming aerated drinks and alcohol as much as possible. These have adverse effect on the salivary glands. Also, carbonated drinks are acidic in nature and harm the teeth since there is no saliva to protect them. Eating peaches and cherries also helps in producing saliva without adding empty calories to the body. To treat rawness of the tongue, consume a lot of yogurt and include Vitamin C in your diet. Munching on celery also stimulates salivary glands. Fruits that are rich in water content, like watermelon and cucumber can also be consumed daily.
Drinking plain water may not always work. So, you can make up for the loss of electrolytes from the body by making your own decoction. This is an easy replacement for expensive sports drinks. Take 1 teaspoon salt and sugar each, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and mix these into a cup of water. Add some lemon juice or orange for added flavor. Consuming this every day will help restore the electrolytes and also produce more saliva. Alternatively, you can just add lemon to your water and drink it up. The acidic nature of lemon will automatically produce more saliva. Another easy way to stimulate saliva is chewing a gum. However, it would be better if you opted for sugarless gums, as the absence of saliva makes your teeth more vulnerable to decay caused by sugar.