What Should I Know About ‘Cottonmouth?’

While it also refers to an especially poisonous snake you should avoid, cottonmouth is the lesser known name of a condition that’s fairly prevalent among the populace—xerostomia or dry mouth, which is when the body doesn’t produce enough saliva. Cottonmouth may be temporary, brought about by excitement or nerves, or the condition can be ongoing due to specific medical issues or medications. While the exact figure isn’t known, many people suffer from cottonmouth at one time or another depending on their age and medical history. If you’re worried you’re suffering from cottonmouth, here is a quick rundown of what you should know.

The Basics of Cottonmouth

According to the American Dental Association (ADA), a healthy individual produces as many as one and a half liters of saliva every day, and you're more likely to suffer from cottonmouth whenever the body’s salivary glands cease their production of saliva. Saliva has several key functions, such as aiding in digestion, keeping your mouth moist, cleaning the mouth, and maintaining neutral pH levels.

Not every dry mouth case is identical, with symptoms including dry or sticky feelings in your mouth—you may feel as though you have cotton stuffed into your mouth and as though you have rubbed a towel on your oral cavity. Regarding severe cases, individuals tend to develop cracked lips, feel burning sensations in their throats, or have trouble chewing, speaking, or swallowing.

What Causes Cottonmouth?

While no one thing causes cottonmouth, there are factors that can contribute to the condition, including the following:

• Medications : Over 500 medicines have been linked with dry mouth, including prescription allergy medication, sedatives, and antidepressants. Changing doses or switching over to other formulations may help relieve symptoms of dry mouth.
• Medical conditions : Per the ADA, Sjogren's disease, which is an autoimmune disease that can cause damaging inflammation to your salivary glands, is among the more common conditions linked with dry mouth.
• Radiation therapy/chemotherapy : Radiation therapy or chemotherapy, especially for cancer treatments in the neck or head, is another common cause of dry mouth, per the ADA. Dry mouth symptoms may develop during therapy or months later.
• Lifestyle habits : Some lifestyle habits, including drinking lots of alcohol, smoking, and drugs like cocaine, marijuana, or speed, can cause cottonmouth.

Treating Cottonmouth

Because saliva’s function is to maintain cleanliness in the mouth while keeping bacteria in check, individuals with persistent dry mouth are much more likely to develop gum disease, tooth decay, and other infections in the mouth. Cottonmouth treatment can range from correcting medications to addressing underlying conditions. Whenever a dry mouth case is linked with lifestyle choices, cutting back on them or giving up them entirely could improve symptoms.

Drinking more water can help as well, as this moistens the mouth while helping with swallowing and chewing, as well as chewing gum to stimulate the flow of saliva. You also must continue with a solid oral healthcare routine, including brushing twice per day with fluoride toothpaste, flossing once daily, and using mouthwash to protect your teeth further.

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