How to Get Rid of Dry Mouth Naturally
If you have a dry mouth, you may feel as though it's full of cotton. Sometimes a common cold can cause a dry mouth. Other causes include medications, cancer therapy and health conditions such as depression, stroke or diabetes. If your dry mouth is severe, you may find relief in artificial saliva products. If your condition is mild and not very bothersome, however, you may be able to treat your mouth dryness at home, naturally.
If you are experiencing serious medical symptoms, seek emergency treatment immediately.
Drink water. Sipping water throughout the day can help keep your mucous membranes moist. If you don't like water, choose another sugar-free beverage to sip regularly.
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Concentrate on breathing through your nose. Breathing through your mouth can make your mouth dry 1. If your nose is stuffed, treat your congestion by inhaling steam from a hot shower or using saline drops, and then blow your nose well.
Run a humidifier in your bedroom, especially at night. A cool mist humidifier can help keep your mouth moist and also help to relieve nasal congestion, which may exacerbate your dry mouth.
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Choose foods that are moist. If you want to eat something that is dry, consider moistening it with broth, gravy or sauce. Pick cool or room temperature foods over hot foods.
Suck on sugar-free candy or chew sugar-free gum to stimulate saliva production. Do not suck or chew on products that contain sugar, because the sugar coupled with inadequate saliva can put you at risk for dental cavities.
Make lifestyle changes, if necessary. Avoid caffeinated beverages, because they can be drying. Alcohol and tobacco can make a dry mouth worse, so cut down on drinking and smoking or quit.
Tips
If your dry mouth started after you began taking a new medication, talk to your doctor. In some cases, he may be able to give you a different prescription. Some over-the-counter medications that may cause mouth dryness include antihistamines and decongestants.
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References
- BreastCancer.org: Dry Mouth
- Cleveland Clinic: Dry Mouth Treatments
- Medline Plus: Dry Mouth
- American Dental Association (ADA). Xerostomia (Dry Mouth). Department of Scientific Information, ADA Science Institute. Updated July 9, 2019.
- Bartels C. Xerostomia. The Oral Cancer Foundation. Updated October 15, 2018
- Barnhart MK, Robinson RA, Simms VA, et al. Treatment toxicities and their impact on oral intake following non-surgical management for head and neck cancer: a 3-year longitudinal study. Support Care Cancer. 2018;26(7):2341-2351. doi:10.1007/s00520-018-4076-6
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Candida Infections Of The Mouth, Throat, And Esophagus | Fungal Diseases | CDC. National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases (DFWED). Updated November 13, 2019.
- V Sankar, N Rhodus, & the AAOM Web Writing Group. Xerostomia. The American Academy of Oral Medicine. Updated October 15, 2015.
- Rusthen S, Kristoffersen AK, Young A, Galtung HK, Petrovski BÉ, Palm Ø et al. Dysbiotic salivary microbiota in dry mouth and primary Sjögren's syndrome patients. PLoS One. 2019 Jun 18;14(6):e0218319. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218319.
- V Sankar, N Rhodus & the AAOM Web Writing Group. Dry Mouth. The American Academy of Oral Medicine. Updated October 15, 2015.
- American Dental Association. Dry Mouth. Mouth Healthy. Updated January 2019.
- Men K, Geng H, Zhong H, Fan Y, Lin A, Xiao Y. A deep learning model for predicting xerostomia due to radiotherapy for head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma in the RTOG 0522 clinical trial. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2019 Jun 12. pii: S0360-3016(19)30834-X. doi:10.1016/j.ijrobp.2019.06.009.
- National Institutes of Health. Dry Mouth. National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. Updated January 2019.
Writer Bio
Michelle Kulas worked in the health-care field for 10 years, serving as a certified nurses' assistant, dental assistant and dental insurance billing coordinator. Her areas of expertise include health and dental topics, parenting, nutrition, homeschooling and travel.