How Untreated Dry Mouth Can Damage Your Oral Health

Dry mouth might seem like a minor annoyance, but a lack of saliva can lead to major oral health issues, like infections, cavities, and even tooth loss. Know this, however: Lifestyle changes combined with oral health treatment can help. Here’s how.

It’s normal to experience occasional dry mouth — illness, dry air, exercise, and even stress or nervousness can all cause temporary dehydration that leave your mouth feeling uncomfortably dry.

However, if dry mouth is a chronic problem, you might actually have an oral health problem called xerostomia — literally, “dry mouth.” Low levels of saliva are to blame, and without treatment, you can wind up dealing with a host of problems. The good news: Prompt treatment can help.

Thomas Eaton, DDS, has extensive experience treating xerostomia, relieving uncomfortable symptoms and restoring optimal oral health. If you’re suffering from dry mouth, here’s how Dr. Eaton can help you.

Why dry mouth develops

Lots of underlying factors can cause or contribute to dry mouth, including:

Medications, including some antidepressants, allergy medicines, and hypertension medicines
Health conditions like diabetes, autoimmune disorders, and hypertension
Some medical treatments, including some treatments for cancer
Infections, injuries, or disorders affecting the salivary glands
Mouth breathing
Nerve damage in the head or neck area

Dry mouth also tends to increase as we get older.

While the root causes of dry mouth may differ, the effects on your mouth are the same. Symptoms to look for include:

Perpetually dry or “sticky” feeling in the mouth
Frequent thirst
Dry throat
Difficulty chewing or swallowing
Mouth sores or cracked corners of the lips
Dry, sore, or tingling tongue
Persistent sore throat or hoarseness
Chronic bad breath

You don’t need to experience all of these symptoms to have problems. Even a few dry-mouth issues can take a big toll on your oral health.

How dry mouth affects your oral health

Dry mouth might make your mouth feel uncomfortable, but the effects of xerostomia are actually far more concerning. That’s because saliva actually protects your oral health in several key ways.

First, saliva helps wash away food particles that feed bacteria responsible for tooth decay and gum disease. It also contains chemicals that neutralize the acids that attack your tooth enamel.

Those chemical components also help remineralize your teeth, strengthening the layer of protective enamel that aids in preventing cavities and tooth loss. Saliva also helps break down food particles to support normal digestion.

And of course, by routinely washing away food and neutralizing bacteria, ample saliva levels reduce the risks of stains and bad breath, too.

Preventing xerostomia

The first step in treating dry mouth is identifying the underlying cause. If medications or medical conditions are to blame, adjusting your treatment plan may help.

Problems involving your salivary glands — like infection or gland dysfunction — require a different approach. Medications like rinses or mouth sprays may help, along with therapies to help restore gland function.

In addition to medical treatment, Dr. Eaton can help you identify lifestyle changes to prevent dry mouth problems, too. Some of the simplest steps you can take include:

Keeping a water bottle handy and taking small sips throughout the day
Chewing sugar-free gum to stimulate saliva flow
Using sugar-free candies, especially citrus or mint flavors
Drinking water with meals to ease chewing and swallowing
Steering clear of caffeine and salty snacks
Avoiding tobacco and limiting alcohol
Running a humidifier at night to moisten indoor air

Since dry mouth increases your risks of oral health problems, it’s critically important to practice good oral hygiene habits at home, along with having regular checkups so Dr. Eaton can identify and treat emerging issues in their earliest stages.

Don’t ignore dry mouth symptoms

Dry mouth symptoms can definitely be uncomfortable and annoying, but they may also pose more serious problems, like tooth decay, gum disease, and eventual tooth loss. If you have dry mouth, don’t delay treatment. Request an appointment with Dr. Eaton at his practice in Ione, California, today.