[Arrietty]

Does anyone suffer from dry mouth, and if so, what do you do about it?

Mine is so bad it's interfering with my sleep. I wake up every 1/2-1 hour so dry I'm needing a drink, all night long.

I do sometimes use the Biotene paste in the tube, and it helps a little.

Any help would be much appreciated.

[Debbie D]

There is a mouthwash and toothpaste called Biotene for this. My meds give me dry mouth and eyes.

I also chew sugarless gum to stimulate saliva flow.

You need to deal with this-otherwise you will have serious dental issues!!

[SallyC]

A lot of meds you take can cause dry mouth. And yes,
I lost a bunch of teeth due to dry mouth.
The teeth became brittle a cracked, leading to decay.

See your Dentist and save your teeth.

[Arrietty]

Originally Posted by SallyC

A lot of meds you take can cause dry mouth. And yes,
I lost a bunch of teeth due to dry mouth.
The teeth became brittle a cracked, leading to decay.

See your Dentist and save your teeth.

Thank you, Sally! I do use the Biotene, and it helps some. I'll look into the chewing gum.

[agate]

I've had dry mouth (and dry eyes) for years. I don't know if it's just aging. It probably has a lot to do with some medicines I take but I can't cut down on them.

I've already cut out Vesicare and a number of others because of the dry mouth problem.

If you can find any medicines that might be causing your dry mouth, you should see if you can reduce the dosage or cut them out entirely.

Some of my dental problems in recent years--several tooth extractions--may have been related to dry mouth too.

I use a rinse for dry mouth 2 or more times a day. I use either ACT or Biotene rinse. I also use Oral Balance moisturizing gel several times a day. It doesn't taste bad and seems to help.

I keep a water bottle filled with ice cubes by my bedside. I get thirsty in the middle of the night and just reach for that. The water will stay somewhat cool as the night wears on.

I've found that reducing salt in my diet helps too.

[Arrietty]

Thank you, Agate!

Those are some good ideas. I do keep water by my bed, but I have to wake my husband to give it to me because I use a CPAP mask and I can't tale it off by myself.

I will talk to my doctor about my meds the next time I see her.

Arrietty

[agate]

My son has worn a CPAP mask for years, and it looks as if it would be difficult to get a drink of water with it on.

I forgot to mention that I also use a toothpaste for dry mouth put out by Biotene, as Debbie D already mentioned.

I brush with this 3 times a day.

If I sound like a fanatic, I am. I'm very determined to avoid going to a dentist. And my mouth can get so dry that I choke.

I carry around some (sugar-free) hard candy. One of those will take care of dry mouth problems that come up in places where water isn't handy.

[NurseNancy]

you might also talk to your pharmacist about dry mouth products. cheaper than making a dental appt.

i agree with the others that dry mouth can lead to serious dental problems.
i get thirsty so i have H2O by my chair all day.

[tkrik]

I get dry mouth all the time. I have not tried Biotene but my physical therapist told me about it. I take Ditropan for my bladder and that causes dry mouth. Like others, I keep water by me all the time and drink a lot of it. Sometimes flavored water helps to quench my thirst and dry mouth, especially lemon water.

This may sound odd but I had a mouth sore right by a tooth not too long ago. I tried everything I could think of to get rid of it. Someone recommended that I try rinsing my mouth with coconut oil. I didn't have any coconut oil and was feeling desperate so I used olive oil and rinsed my mouth with it. Not only did the sore ease up but so did the dry mouth. I didn't have problems with it for the rest of the day and night. I haven't tried it again and actually forgot about it until just now so I don't know if it was a coincidence or if it really does work long tern.

[Arrietty]

Coconut oil sounds odd, but it just might work! I'll give it a try.

My biggest problem with dry mouth is at night. Poor hubby gets awfully crabby about being woken up several times to give me water, and I understand how he feels. But what am I to do?

We do have some Vaseline in a tube, which can be used to moisturise my dry, cracked lips.

Anyway, thanks for responding!

Arrietty