Dry mouth (xerostomia or oligostomy)

is a common consequence of decreased saliva production.

Dry oral mucosa is more prone to damage

which can lead to inflammation more quickly.

The pH value in the salivary secretion is often reduced when the mouth is dry.

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Causes:

• Arises from decreased saliva secretion

e.g. through:

• Stress or stage fright

• Lack of fluids, dehydration (due to insufficient drinking fluid / total fluid intake) (watch out for diarrhea and vomiting)

• dry air

• Mouth breathing

• increasing age

• snoring

• hoarseness

• psyche

• smoking

• surgical interventions in the ear and nose area

• Radiation therapy in the ear and nose area

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Symptoms:

• Foetor ex ore (bad breath)

• Caries

• Risk groups: the elderly, tumors of the salivary glands, radiation therapy in the face or neck area, Sjörgen syndrome, medication

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Possible diseases as the cause:

• Salivary gland tumors

• Cold / sinus infection

• Metabolic diseases: diabetes mellitus

• Sialadenosis (= painless bilateral swelling of the salivary glands reduces saliva secretion)

• Diabetes insipidus (= urinary urgency, impaired urine excretion, increased urine excretion (polyuria))

• Short stature

• Addison's disease

• Sarcoid

• Sjogren's Syndrome

• Growth hormone deficiency

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Drugs that cause dry mouth because they affect the autonomic nervous system:

• Antihypertensive drugs: Medicines for high blood pressure : e.g. beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, some water-releasing drugs (diuretics), calcium channel blockers

• Painkillers : Strong opioid drugs cause dry mouth.

• Drugs : The active ingredient in cannabis tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as well as other drugs such as heroin, cocaine or ecstasy (MDMA) affect the function of the salivary glands.

• Anti-Parkinson drugs : dopamine agonists

• Sedatives and sleeping pills: antispasmodics (antispasmodics), some sleeping pills (hypnotics) and tranquilizers (sedatives)

• Antihistamines (active ingredients against allergies) - they too can cause dry mouth.

• Anticholinergics : drugs that directly inhibit the parasympathetic or activate the sympathetic (sympathomimetics).

• Chemotherapy drugs : undergoing chemotherapy as part of cancer treatment, suffer from severe dry mouth. This is more common with some cytotoxic drugs.

• Antiepiletics for epilepsy

• Antiemetics : Medications for nausea and vomiting often cause dry mouth.

• Psychotropic drugs: some antidepressants, but also anti-anxiety drugs (neuroleptics) often result in a dry mouth.

Source: https://www.netdoktor.de/symptome/mundtrockenheit/

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Saliva production: approx. 0.5 - 1.5 liters per day

Glands: 6 large salivary glands & innumerable small salivary glands. The largest gland is the paired parotid gland (parotid gland), which extends over the cheeks. The smaller salivary glands are located on the right and left in the floor of the mouth as the sublingual gland (glandula sublingualis) and the lower jaw salivary gland (glandula submandibularis).

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Why is nutritional therapy important?

Nutritional therapy helps you counteract dry mouth by stimulating saliva production with natural foods. The fluid requirement is determined for you and the fluid intake can be monitored with the help of a drinking log. Furthermore, inflammation of the oral mucosa / tongue area as a result of the dry mouth should be counteracted by an appropriate diet. When the oral mucosa / tongue area is / are already inflamed, the diet is adapted by a low-acid / non-irritating diet, depending on the case, with a consistent diet.

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Classification of your weight - definition and classification of weight in relation to height.

Special percentile curves apply to children and adolescents; the BMI cannot simply be used here.

BMI and interpretation: BMI: body mass index. Formula: Body weight in kg : (body height in m) 2

Underweight: <18.5

Normal weight: 18.5 - 24.9

Overweight = pre-obesity: 25-29.9

Obesity grade I: 30 - 34.9

Obesity grade II: 35-39.9

Obesity grade III:> 40 = per magna

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Nutritional therapy

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• Stimulate saliva production with food and beverages

• Counteracting dry mouth overall

• Pay attention to sufficient fluid intake, keep a drinking log, observe total fluid intake

• Anti-inflammatory nutrition as a basis, individually tailored to you, possibly adapted to the consistency

• Holistic therapy - do you have any comorbidities that need to be taken into account during the consultation?

• Overall fat selection, how should it be designed

• How many animal foods (e.g. meat products, milk and dairy products, cheese, fish products, eggs) are recommended?

• What do I have to look out for when choosing animal foods?

• How can I counteract inflammatory processes through diet?

• Body weight: Weight reduction is recommended if you are overweight / obese.

• In the case of insulin resistance and lipid metabolism disorders, also treat them with nutritional therapy

• Avoid micronutrient deficiencies and mineral deficiencies & possibly counteract them with nutrient preparations

• Prevent protein deficiency

• Which nutrients do I need in which ratio?

• Get enough fiber (> 30 g / day) through natural foods, possibly fiber substitution

• Sufficient fluid: total fluid per day: 30 - 35 ml per kg body weight and day. Attention, this is not just a drinking liquid. The liquid from food (approx. 500 - 800 ml) must still be subtracted from this, so that an amount of approx. 1.3 - 2 l of drinking liquid is created.

• add valuable anti-carcinogenic (anti-cancer) secondary plant substances

• A selection of foods tailored to your needs with cooking and technical information (for breakfast, snacks, lunch, dinner)

• Do you like to eat your warm meal in the evening? I am happy to cater to your individual situation and we will create a plan on how you can implement your wholesome diet into your everyday life.

• which oils are good for me? What should I watch out for in relation to the anti-inflammatory diet?

• How much fat spread (butter / margarine / vegetable fat) can I use and which products are recommended?

• Get enough Omgea-3 fatty acids and essential fatty acids

• How can I boost and support my metabolism with natural foods?

• Coordinate sensible meal frequency for your individual case - meal allocation

• Define the desired weight stabilization / normalization & the estimated period for this

• what should be considered with beverages and alcoholic beverages?

• How does exercise affect your body and thus also your diet?

• Avoid blood sugar fluctuations

• Sweetening foods - sweeteners, glucose, fructose, sugar and sugar substitutes, what can I use and in what quantities? How high is the respective sweetness of the different products?

• what should be considered when baking and cooking?

• what are cheap snacks / main meals

• Eating out - what should you watch out for?

• Vacation, boat trip or hospital stay, what should be considered?

• Flatulence, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, heartburn, loss of appetite, pain related to eating, what can I do about it?

• Daily plans as an example for practical implementation in everyday life

• Enjoyment training

• Optimizing your eating situation

• long-term maintenance of a jointly defined weight

• Strengthen the stomach and intestines with natural foods

• Additional therapy options

• Dietetic products in support of nutritional therapy

• Food supplements - under certain circumstances, a supplement can be useful

• and other topics

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Any questions? I look forward to your call or email. To contact form

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Assistance:

• KISS self-help groups

• Self-help network

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