9 Causes of white tongue and various ways to overcome them!

The color of the tongue can describe your health. A healthy tongue should be pink with a thin white layer on top. However, if you have a thick enough white coating or white patches on your tongue, then you need to know the causes and how to deal with white tongue. Check out the full explanation!

Common causes of a white tongue

Quoted from Healthline, the condition of a white tongue is often related to oral hygiene. Your tongue may turn white when the small, curved bumps (papillae) swell until they become inflamed.

Bacteria, mold, dirt, food, and dead cells can all get caught between the enlarged papillae. This is what ultimately makes the tongue turn white.

Although harmless, in rare cases, a white tongue can indicate a more serious condition such as infection or symptoms of cancer.

The following are some of the factors that can also cause a white tongue, namely:

• Rarely do brushing and flossing.
• Dry mouth.
• Breathe through your mouth.
• Dehydration.
• Eat lots of soft textured foods.
• Irritation due to sharp teeth or dental cleaning equipment.
• Fever.
• Smoking or chewing tobacco.
• Excessive alcohol consumption.

Various causes of white tongue

Here are some conditions that can cause a white tongue, namely:

1. Leukoplakia

This condition usually causes white patches on the inner cheeks, along the gums, and sometimes on your tongue. Excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and chewing tobacco are the causes of this condition.

The presence of white patches on the tongue that is a sign of the condition leukoplakia is generally not dangerous. But in rare cases, the cause of the tongue to turn white can also develop into oral cancer.

2. Syphilis

This venereal disease can cause sores in your mouth. Transmission of the disease caused by Treponema pallidum infection is through contact with an infected person during sexual activity.

The bacteria enter your body through minor cuts or abrasions on your skin or mucous membranes.

Syphilis can be spread by direct unprotected closed contact with active lesions (such as when kissing) or via an infected mother to her baby during pregnancy or childbirth (congenital syphilis).

If syphilis is not treated, then white patches called syphilitic leukoplakia can be the cause of a white tongue.

3. Oral thrush

The cause of the tongue turning white is an oral infection caused by the candida fungus. Oral thrush generally affects more women than men.

You are at risk for oral thrush if you have diabetes, are deficient in iron or B vitamins, wear dentures, and have a weakened immune system because of certain diseases.

4. Oral lichen planus

Oral lichen planus is a condition that marks a problem with your immune system. As a result, white patches on the mouth and tongue are unavoidable.

The cause of this white tongue also results in sore gums. The chances of you having a sore along the lining of your mouth are also quite high.

5. Geographic tongue

This condition marks inflammation of the tongue, but is not dangerous that will affect the surface of your tongue.

If the surface of a healthy tongue is covered with pink papillae, then on geographic tongue part of the tongue will look like a patch that is not papillary because it looks smooth and slippery with a white line around it.

6. Oral cancer

Oral cancer occurs when cells in your lips or mouth have DNA mutations. These mutations allow cancer cells to continue to grow and divide as healthy cells die.

The accumulation of these abnormal oral cancer cells can form tumors that will spread into the mouth and the head and neck area.

Oral cancer is often characterized by the presence of thin (squamous) cells that line your lips and the inside of your mouth including your tongue.

7. Tongue cancer

Tongue cancer is a form of cancer that starts in the cells of the tongue. Tongue cancer often starts in the flat, thin squamous cells that line the surface of the tongue.

Tongue cancer symptoms are generally similar to other oral cancer symptoms.

Some of the symptoms of the cause of this white tongue are difficulty swallowing, pain in the infected area and won't heal, weight loss, bleeding in the mouth, red or white spots on the tongue, and pain in the bumps on the tongue.

8. Consumption of drugs such as antibiotics

Taking medications such as antibiotics can cause yeast infections to develop in the mouth. This is what is also unconsciously one of the causes of a white tongue.

How to deal with the causes of white tongue

• Brushing gently using a soft bristle brush.
• Using a special tongue cleaner.
• Drinking lots of water can also help remove bacteria and food debris stuck on the tongue which causes a white tongue.

However, if you have done these things but are not lost, then you need to find the cause of white tongue to know the most appropriate treatment.

• Leukoplakia usually doesn't need to be treated. However, you need to go to the dentist to docheck up routine to make sure his condition doesn't get worse. To get rid of the white coating or patches, you need to stop smoking or chewing tobacco, and reduce the intake of alcohol into the body.
• Oral lichen planus also does not require special treatment. However, if the condition is severe the doctor will prescribe a steroid spray or mouth wash made of steroid pills dissolved in water.
• Oral thrushcan be treated with antifungal drugs. This medicine is in the form of a gel or liquid that can be rubbed into the mouth and in the form of a pill.
• Syphilistreated with penicillin. This antibiotic can kill the bacteria that cause syphilis.

Natural treatments that can be done to deal with white tongue

1. Consuming probiotics

An imbalance of healthy bacteria in the intestines can be the cause of mouth ulcers and white coating of the tongue. Taking supplements and foods containing probiotics can help balance the healthy bacteria in the gut.

In addition, it can also treat health conditions associated with the candida fungus that causes oral thrush.

Several studies have shown that probiotics are beneficial for oral health because they can inhibit the growth of unwanted microbes such as causing a white tongue.

Probiotic bacteria are associated with preventing inflammation and growth of bacteria on the tongue because they affect the bacteria present in the mouth and the immune response.

2. Consuming aloe vera juice

Aloe vera has antibacterial, antifungal and anti-inflammatory properties. That is why it is used to treat infections, wounds, burns, and skin irritations.

In addition, aloe vera also contains enzymes that help remove dead cells and help regenerate skin tissue.

To get rid of the cause of the white coating on your tongue, one tablespoon of aloe vera juice that you consume two to three times a day can make the coating disappear.

3. Eating garlic

The antifungal properties of garlic make it an effective natural remedy for treating the causes of white tongue. Research shows that allicin, one of the active compounds in garlic.

This compound exhibits antifungal effects and may be just as effective as fluconazole, a drug used to treat fungal infections, including yeast infections of the mouth.

To treat white tongue, especially due to thrush or bacterial overgrowth, take one raw garlic clove per day for consumption or use an organic raw garlic supplement.

4. Using baking soda

Baking soda able to remove food debris that causes white tongue and maintain the pH level in the mouth by neutralizing acids.

Plus, research shows that baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, has inhibitory activity against Streptococcus mutans in saliva and plaque.

Baking soda can cause a significant reduction in the number of bacterial cells in the mouth in a study conducted by the Dows Institute for Dental Research at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry.

You just need to mix one teaspoon of baking soda with lemon juice until it has a paste-like texture. Then add the mixture to your toothbrush, and brush your tongue and mouth.

When to see a doctor

If the cause of the coating or white spots on the tongue does not go away in two weeks, you can consult a doctor. In addition, if you experience more serious symptoms as below you need to immediately see a doctor:

• The tongue feels sore or burning.
• Have open sores in the mouth.
• Has difficulty chewing, swallowing, or speaking.
• Experiencing other symptoms such as fever, weight loss, or skin rash.

How to prevent the causes of white tongue

Basically, the way to prevent white tongue is to avoid the cause. Preventing a white tongue is not always possible, but there are several things you can do, namely, by maintaining oral hygiene such as:

• Brush your teeth twice a day.
• Use a fluoride type of mouthwash every day.
• Using fluoride toothpaste.
• Flossing at least once a day.
• Brushing your teeth with a soft-bristled toothbrush to prevent infection from being too hard.
• Check your teeth every six months.
• Quit smoking.
• Reducing alcohol consumption.
• Eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.