• 12/08/2022
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The white coating on the tongue is often related to poor oral hygiene.But the causes may be more serious<

18.8.2021/ Barbora Košňarová/ Articles/ 0 Comments

Although it is said that a normal tongue has a healthy pink color, even a fine white coating may not be a sign of pathological state.However, if you noticed that there has been a change in the structure or color of the secretion that is on the tongue, you should not underestimate the situation.The blame may be yeast infection, but also streptococcus or even cancer.

Is the coating on the tongue normal?

If you turn the tongue and look in the mirror, you will probably notice the presence of a fine white coating.This is formed by virtually every person and therefore does not represent any abnormality.The mucous membrane of the oral cavity is constantly changing, there is peeling and accumulation of dead cells, and then mixed with saliva and food remnants, which creates a coating on the tongue.

The language coating partially reflects the state of individual organs.In healthy persons, it is usually white and is very fine, but the thin layer also appears at the beginning of the disease.However, it always depends on what the coating looks like, whether it is continuous or, on the contrary, separate spots or stripes.In addition, secretions are inhabited by bacteria and can also smell or irritate the patient in a different way.

A large number of pathogens concentrate on the surface of the tongue that are swallowed further into the body.In some cases, the coating may even draw attention to the less or more serious health problems that need to be consulted with the attending physician.The structure and color of the coating may vary significantly.Patients complain most about:

If the coating is dense, most likely it means that the pollutants have penetrated deep and the mucus formation occurs.Gray coloring tongue usually indicates cold, moisture or heat, gray -black indicates kidney disorder or health problems in the urinary tract and black often means extreme fluctuations of body temperature.

The white-yellow coating on the tongue of the doctors usually tells that the patient is troubled by difficulties concerning liver or gallbladder (for example, elevated cholesterol or reduced bile secretion).The brown coating often signals intestinal disorders.As for the white coating of the language, it can have a number of different causes, from the banal to very serious, which is not advisable to underestimate.

Sometimes there is also a redness of the tongue, which is typical of the emerging fever.However, the upper respiratory tract infection or asleep may also be responsible for the development of these problems.However, to make matters worse, low iron intake in the diet is also problematic or insufficient consumption of Group B vitamins.

What does a white coating on the tongue mean?

Patients are usually most interested in what medical complications can cause this condition, what to do if their tongue has a white coating and whether it is necessary to immediately worry.Whether a white coating appears on the tongue in children or record a white coating on the tongue in adults, do not underestimate the situation.People with a wider and wrinkled tongue tend to make a greater coating.

Sometimes it can cause a white coating on the tongue burning and this problem is associated with other symptoms such as fever, weakness, inexplicable weight loss, increased fatigue or night sweating.The fact that it is not a common situation, but it is more of a problem caused by the development of a disease can alert you the following symptoms:

The most common reasons why patients face the presence of white or otherwise colored coating on the tongue are poor oral hygiene.However, a number of other factors such as smoking or taking some drugs can be to blame.A separate chapter is the development of diseases such as yeast infections, angina, lichen planus or leukoplakia.

Poor oral hygiene

Although a large number of patients hear during a regular dentist that it is necessary to clean your tongue in addition to teeth, not everyone really does it.Neglected oral hygiene may be caused by an unpleasant smell from the mouth.At the same time, it also causes the development of a white coating on the tongue that becomes a breeding ground for bacteria.

Axle is in this case but relatively easy.Just take care of regular and thorough tooth cleaning and it also pays to clean your tongue using brushes with a coarser surface or through a special spray.A conventional white tongue coating in this way can easily be removed.However, if it remains in place even after thorough cleaning, it may be a signal that your body is fighting with some disease.

If you did not notice any difficulties in the morning, but in the afternoon you noticed that the tongue has reddish, turns black or gained an unpleasantly greyish shade, you do not have to panic immediately.For the transitional changes in color can also be responsible for the diet that one consumes during the day.The color of the tongue can affect, for example, sweets, berry fruit, red wine or coffee.

Dehydration

Another cause of a white coating on the tongue may be too much breathing by mouth or unpleasant drought in the oral cavity that often accompanies the feeling of bitterness.But the burning of the tongue and the white coating may also be responsible for the dehydration of the organism where harmful substances cannot leave the body naturally.Due to insufficient fluid intake, the mucous membranes dry up, thereby impairing the cleaning capacity of the oral cavity.

Smoking

The white coating on the tongue of an adult patient may of course be associated with frequent smoking.The cigarette smoke contains a number of harmful substances whose action is directly damaged by the surface of the tongue.At the same time, smoking leads to the drying of the oral cavity mucosa and, of course.

Yeast infection

Quite often they are responsible for the coating of yeast, specifically the type of Candida Albicans, which is responsible for the development of various oral and genital fungal infections.This mycosis causes the formation of whitish coatings (the so -called.SOOR) that cover not only the tongue but also other parts of the oral cavity mucosa.They can be quite easily wiped off, but the base below is red and irritated.

Also for a white tongue coating in a newborn may be responsible yeast infection that the child gets infected at birth.Green or white coating on the tongue in infant also occurs quite often, but mycoses in this case tend to be short -term.If the problem persists for more than a week, it is necessary to consult a doctor, which also applies to a situation where a white coating on tongue and aphthae appears.

Yeasts on mucous membranes are also accompanied by patients suffering from diabetes or persons with weakened immunity (for example, after chemotherapy or influence of HIV disease).However, they may also occur after the treatment of antibiotics, which, although they destroy bacilli, but also violate a healthy bacterial microflora, and the white coating is no exception.

Streptococcal or viral infection

Are you troubled by a white coating on your tongue and sore throat?In this case, the blame is probably the streptococcal infection in the oral cavity.Most often it is angina, which is infectious inflammation of the cervical almonds.Furthermore, these complications can also be accompanied by various respiratory infections that cause white coating on the tongue and red dots.

Map language

The relatively common states include the map -like language or lingua geographica.In this case, there are places with a whitish coating on the patient's tongue that alternate with reddish, sharply bounded bearings.The development of this health problem may sometimes be associated with the ongoing autoimmune disease, but in many cases its originator is unable to detect.

Oral lichen planus

The white coating on the tongue is also formed in patients who are struggling with a disease called Lichen Planus.It is a subacute or chronically ongoing disease that can affect the skin, hair, nails, mucous membranes of the oral cavity, but also the mucous membranes of the genital organs.As for the manifestation in the oral cavity, in addition to the white coating on the tongue, there are also reddish sores.

Leukoplakia

If the white coating on the tongue is resistant to any cleaning, it has a sharp border and extends rather than to reduce, can be replaced by a more resistant surface that will corner over time.A white coating may then appear on the mucous membranes, which doctors professionally indicate the term leukoplakia.

The symptoms of leukoplakia include a thick white coating on the tongue, gums and on the inner surface of the oral cavity that cannot be peeled or scratched.These difficulties in some patients will disappear over time, but at other times they may cause more serious complications.If you are struggling with this problem, you should rather consult your doctor's solution.

Some forms of leukoplakia are associated with viral infections, while others develop due to smoking and excessive alcohol consumption.Leukoplakia on the edges of the tongue (hairy leukoplakia) is a sign of HIV infection.In some cases, these health problems are a pre -ranking state (professionally precancerosis) that may result in the development of a malignant tumor.

Other possible causes

In addition to the above -mentioned officials, other factors can also play a role.In some cases, the white coating on the tongue of the cancer of the tongue or cancer of the oral cavity causes.However, other (often more banal) reasons such as:

Diagnostics

If you have noticed a special white or otherwise colored coating on your tongue that is not related to your diet and will not disappear within a few days, you should ideally seek your doctor.This also applies if you notice some of the following complications:

The doctor will then be interested in your history first, including the regularity of teeth and possibly tongue, smoking, drinking alcoholic beverages and taking medication.In addition, he also asks about the well -known health problems you are currently struggling or have faced in the past.

Following will probably be a basic examination that can be supplemented with swabs from the oral cavity.The doctor then sends them to microbiological tests that can detect the presence of yeast.If leukoplakia is suspected, it is also possible to remove a histological examination from a white deposit.This makes it possible to prove or exclude pre -tumor changes.

How to get rid of the white coating on the tongue?

If you are troubled by some of the above mentioned difficulties, you are sure to wonder if there is a treatment for a white coating on the tongue and what you should do to get back to normal.In most cases it is not necessary to treat the white coating in any way because it will disappear within a few days.Sufficient fluid intake (preferably clean water) can also play a role.

Sometimes thorough hygiene of the oral cavity, including regular cleaning of the tongue (for example, using a scraper or a special brush), can help.Since smoking, chewing tobacco or increased alcohol consumption may also be to blame, the white coating on the tongue may disappear even if you stop these bad habits or at least reduce them.

In other cases, the treatment of a white coating on the tongue depends primarily on the health complications that are responsible for this problem.If oral lichen planus is to blame, you can use an oral spray or water containing corticosteroids to alleviate symptoms.Yeast infections of the oral cavity are treated with antifungals in various forms (gels, tablets, lozenges).

If the white coating on the tongue has appeared in conjunction with angina or other streptococcal diseases, doctors usually prescribe antibiotics.Syphilis is then most commonly treated through penicillin.If leukoplakia is caused by the cause of the patient should be regularly checked.It is important to ensure careful oral hygiene, reduce smoking and consume alcoholic beverages and the doctor can also recommend appropriate therapy.

Sources: Stefajir.cz, cs.Medlicker.com, practical cellars.cz