Health News. Lots of resources and information

After a routine exam, a 55-year-old patient cleared her throat as she was getting ready to leave. “Doctor,” she said, “one more thing.”

I motioned to het to sit down. She did, seeming almost embarrassed to bring up what was bothering her.

“My mouth has seemed rather dry lately,” she said. “I find that it’s harder for me to eat, especially foods like toast and crackers.” She added that she had begun to drink water with her meals to help her swallow, which she had never done before.

Dry mouth, or xerostomia, may be due to illness, a change in medication, or a problem with the salivary glands. A stone in the salivary duct can also cause your mouth to become dry. In this case, you’ll definitely know the cause because, in most cases, a salivary duct stone causes a section of the temple or upper neck to swell up. You may also feel a sharp pain in your mouth. A stone is formed by certain chemicals in the duct which then harden and block the duct.

Though doctors once believed that a decrease in saliva production was a natural sign of aging, they now dismiss it. More often, it is something else that affects the salivary glands, although sometimes a patient will complain of the sensation of a dry mouth, or xerostomia, when salivary output is normal.

Though most people might think that having a dry mouth is just an inconvenience, it can lead to other health problems, including an increase in tooth decay.

If you’ve recently developed dry mouth, or if it’s plagued you on and off for years, it’s important to determine the cause, since it can also be a symptom of some serious diseases.

*237\167\8*