White Tongue: What are the Causes and How to Treat It

A white tongue is more common than you think. You can see it during the morning when you are about of brushing your teeth.

You look up to your mirror, and there it is. White tongue can be there even if you brush your tongue and there are a few reasons why.

Don’t be alarm; there are answers to this, and in most cases, it is a harmless condition. To start with the topic, I can begin by saying that a white tongue refers to a white coating, like a layer that sometimes is covering all your tongue reaching the very back of your mouth.

So, your tongue might be completely covered by this coat. However, you could also just have white patches or spots all over your tongue.

Usually, you don’t have to worry about a white tongue.

But, you must see a doctor to be sure about the level of harm this is causing. On rare occasions, a white tongue can be a warning of a more severe problem like oral cancer or a serious infection.

So, to be sure everything is okay the best thing to do is to visit your doctor. I know, sometimes we can think that there is not enough time to visit a dentist in San Diego or your doctor.

But, we need to make room in our daily calendar so we can receive proper medical attention. Remember that prevention is the key to avoid or find health problems in the early stages. So, keep an eye on your other symptoms that come along with the white tongue.

When to Visit a Doctor

Sometimes a dentist in Clairemont will recommend seeing a doctor when you tell that the white coating is not going away.

Meaning, you will need to see a professional if the white surface doesn’t go away in a few weeks.

When it comes to your oral health, the recommendation is to see a dentist in San Diego or anywhere else at least twice a year.

But, when it comes to your overall health, well, you will need to see him often during the year.

What are the Causes?

Well, first of all, you will need to pay attention to your oral health.

Because usually, the white tongue has a close relation to it.

The tongue can be white for a lot of reasons, and one of them is the hygiene routine.

Fungi, dirt, bacteria, food particles, and dead cells can get stuck over your tongue.

When get trapped, all this can create the coat.

To some people, this can result very disgusting.

But, again, if the problem is hygiene, it can be fixed by brushing your tongue. Fortunately, some new dental helpers can aim to clean your tongue properly. If

that is the problem you need to get rid of the white coat because it can cause bad breath too.

• Plus, pay attention to the following list of causes:
• Poor oral hygiene (brushing and flossing)
• Fever caused by some cold or anything else
• Dehydration (you are not drinking enough liquids)
• You have a dry mouth condition
• Breathing too much through your mouth instead of your nose
• Eating several kinds of soft foods too often
• Irritation caused by sharp objects or edged on teeth
• If you smoke too much or chew a lot of tobacco
• Alcohol drinker

As you can see, a lot of usual activities can cause white tongue.

Try to drink enough water and if you can, quit smoking so you can improve your overall health.

Plus, brushing your tongue will be a great idea. Actually, dentists in Clairemont and all over the world encourage you to clean this organ too.

Some Health Conditions can be linked to White Tongue

Even when daily activities contribute to your coat in the mouth, some health conditions can do it too. Some of these include:

Leukoplakia: This disease produces white spots to appear on the interior of your cheeks, gums, and your tongue also. Leukoplakia is a disease you can get if you are a smoker or chew a lot of tobacco.

Huge amounts of alcohol in your body can cause it too.

The white spots over the tongue are normally inoffensive. Although in few cases, leukoplakia can evolve into oral cancer. So, the bottom line here is to take care of your health to avoid bigger problems.

Oral Lichen Planus: this disease can irritate your mouth along with the sore of soft tissues inside it.

Oral lichen planus can appear suddenly, and you can identify it through several symptoms including white coats, swollen muscles, and open sores.

This can’t be passed from one patient to another.

Syphilis:  Well, probably this is the most famous on this list so far.

The disease is sexually, and it is an infection. If you leave a condition like this one without proper treatment, white spots better known as syphilitic leukoplakia can appear.

How to Get rid of it?

First of all, you will need to identify if the white patches are from a poor oral care routine or a health condition.

To start will the test, you can gently brush your tongue with a soft toothbrush.

There are tongue scrapers too, and you can softly run one of these over the tongue.

As you can see, there are a lot of things that can cause a white tongue. The important thing here is to visit your doctor as soon as you start to feel that something is wrong.

Don’t be afraid of a diagnosis, and don’t be afraid of your doctor and dentist.

Health professionals are there for you and your family. Try to pick the right one though. Someone who can understand your needs.

A dentist in Clairemont can detect oral health problems if you visit regularly.

Believe it or not, there are a lot of diseases or dental problems you can prevent if you visit a professional before it’s too late.