Saliva And DryMouth ?
Read about
DryMouth Disease presented in simple
easy to understand language
Why is Saliva so important ?
Saliva does more than keep the mouth wet.
• It helps digest food.
• It protects teeth from decay.
• It prevents infection by controlling bacteria and fungi in the mouth.
• It makes it possible for you to chew and swallow.
Without enough saliva you can develop tooth decay or other
infections in the mouth. You also might not get the nutrients you
need if you cannot chew and swallow certain foods.
Xerostomia is the medical term for a dry mouth due to a lack of
saliva.
Xerostomia is sometimes colloquially called pasties or cottonmouth,
the latter especially when occurring as a side effect, primarily
after smoking marijuana or during a hangover.
Xerostomia can cause difficulty in speech and eating. It also leads
to halitosis and a dramatic rise in the number of cavities, as the
protective effect of saliva is no longer present, and can make the
mucosa of the mouth more vulnerable to infection.
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