Sand_Issue_September-2018

18 wellness
focus
Why You Should
Clean Your Tongue
The health of your tongue
is as important as that of your
teeth. Keeping a healthy and
clean tongue is key to preventing
other serious conditions. Your
tongue can harbour more
debris and bacteria than any
other part of your mouth. The
surface of the tongue is covered
in tiny bumps called papillae
and, within their small grooves,
collect bacteria, dead skin cells,
and food particles. This trapped
debris can cause bad breath and
a white discolouration of the
tongue. The bacteria on the
tongue can also redeposit
onto teeth and gums,
increasing the chance
of plaque and tartar
buildup, as well as
tooth decay and gum
disease.
Tongue cleaning
helps to
• clear toxins &
bacteria from the
tongue
• remove coating on the tongue
that leads to bad breath
• eliminate undigested food
particles from the tongue
• enhances the sense of taste
and
• promotes overall oral health.
Some experts recommend
brushing, while others suggest
that the only real efficient way of
removing this bacteria and debris
is by scraping. Tongue scrapers
are available over the counter
in most pharmacies. If you don’t
have one, you could even use a
teaspoon turned bowl-up. It will
collect a dense, milky, yellowish
film that accumulates on the
surface of your tongue. This film,
called plaque, harbours bacteria
and causes bad breath. When
you clean your tongue daily,
your breath will be a lot fresher.
Restrict tongue-scraping to once
a day. Just like a toothbrush, you
should also rinse your tongue
scraper clean when you’re done.
Who Gets Dry Mouth?
There are several reasons for dry
mouth. You may have it if
you are dehydrated – you may
not be drinking enough water,
sweating a lot or are ill
you take certain medicines –
check the leaflet or search online to
see if dry mouth is a side effect of
any of the medicines you are taking
you breathe through your
mouth at night – this can happen if
you have a blocked nose or you tend
to sleep with your mouth open
you are anxious – when you are
anxious your body is more prone
to acid reflux, which can affect the
salivary glands to produce less saliva
and give a feeling of dry mouth
you are fighting certain
illnesses – cancer treatment can
lead to dry mouth. Dry mouth is also
associated with other illnesses like
Alzheimer's, diabetes, anemia, stroke,
rheumatoid arthritis and Parkinson's.
To avoid dry mouth you must
remain hydrated – take regular sips
throughout the day and keep a bottle
of water at your bedside at night
cut down on coffee and tea –
caffeine can dry our your mouth
chew sugar-free gum – this can
stimulate saliva. Saliva neutralises
acid levels in your mouth (acid
can promote tooth decay), has
antibacterial properties and helps
wash food debris away
chew on certain herbs – chewing
on fennel seeds and cardamom, after
every meal, can help the production
of saliva.
use the right mouthwash – use
the variety that doesn’t contain
alcohol
gargle – gargling three or four times
a day will trigger salivary glands to
secrete saliva and relieve the problem
of dry mouth.
yourwellness.com