Salivary Glands

If anybody ever writes a song about the salivary glands and saliva, they should borrow a phrase from Joni Mitchell. Her 1960s lyrics--"Don''''t it always seem to go, that you don''''t know what you''''ve got till it''''s gone"--seem to say it all.

For saliva is something we take for granted until we don''''t have it, says Leo Streebny, D.D.S., Ph.D., professor in the Department of Oral Biology and Pathology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. "Only when we don''''t have it do we realize how important it is." This special chemical solution is vital in protecting our teeth, fighting off mouth infections and enabling us to speak, swallow, taste and even kiss. "Saliva is an incredible solution," he says.

Wetting Your Whistle

Saliva is churned out by the three major salivary glands plus hundreds of smaller ones throughout the mouth, says Dr. Streebny. These are located on the side of the face, underneath the lower jaw and under the tongue, he says. They normally produce as much as 1 to 1½ quarts of saliva a day.

But if the salivary glands don''''t produce their saliva quota, a condition known as dry mouth--or xerostomia--can develop. And dryness isn''''t the worst of it. If you have xerostomia, you''''re more prone to mouth infections, you may have trouble tasting and swallowing your food and you may even have difficulties talking clearly. The problem affects women more than men by a ratio of about nine to one.

The principal cause of dry mouth is medications, says Dr. Streebny. "There are more than 450 medications that have the capacity to cause it."

But dry mouth can sometimes be caused by Sjögren''''s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that affects as many as four million people--90 percent of them women over age 50. The disease creates a sort of global drying of the body. You''''ll not only have dry mouth but also dry eyes, skin, lips, throat and vaginal tissue, says Dr. Streebny.

Dry mouth can also be caused by dehydration. Menopause may also have something to do with it. Whatever the cause, though, here''''s what you can do about dry mouth.

Go for the chewables. Eat foods that require vigorous chewing, suggests Dr. Streebny. Foods such as celery, bagels and carrots help stimulate saliva flow.

Gum it up. Chewing gum is a wonderful way to stimulate saliva flow, says Dr. Streebny. Just make sure that it''''s sugar-free.

Get your daily ounces. Dry mouth could be nothing more than dehydration, according to Dr. Streebny. Keep a water bottle filled and drink eight ounces every hour or so.

Go on a reconnaissance mission. If you get dry mouth and it''''s temporary--lasting only two to three days--you probably don''''t have too much to worry about, says Dr. Streebny. If it''''s continuous, however, he recommends that you see your doctor.

Give it a squirt. Dry mouth sufferers can get relief with a saliva stimulant called Pro-Flow. Dr. Streebny recommends spraying it in your mouth as often as necessary. A salivary stimulant--pilocarpine--is also being tested. In addition to helping with dry mouth, this drug may lessen some of the dryness symptoms elsewhere in the body.

See also Mouth