5 surprising causes of dry mouth

The main causes of dry mouth or xerostomia in medical terms, are, in most cases, diseases and medicines. Diabetes, stroke, mouth thrush, Alzheimer's and autoimmune diseases, such as Sjogren's syndrome or HIV/AIDS usually lead to dryness in one’s mouth. Xerostomia is also a common side effect of high blood pressure and Parkinson medications, anti-diarrheals, anti-depressants, muscle relaxants and urinary continence drugs. Additionally, consumption of tobacco and alcohol is also likely to effect saliva production. However, you probably do not know that the following seemingly innocent issues below can also induce dry mouth or even mouth ulcers:

Snoring – yes, this is not only responsible for driving your partner crazy. When you snore, you breathe with your mouth and this dries out any saliva inside it. 

Nerve damage - trauma to the head and neck area can cause xerostomia. Accidental or surgical injures and cancer therapises can damage nerves supplying sensation to the mouth, impairing the normal function of the salivary glands.

Irritable bowel syndrome – the symptoms of the syndrome such as nausea and chronic diarrhoea are harmful on their own, but also destabilise the whole organism. One of the negative results is dehydration and lack of saliva.

Heavy workout – Whaaat? As we all know, doing sport can have many benefits, but… when you train you sweat a lot and you boost your metabolism like a rocket, which may dry out your whole body if you don’t drink enough before, during and after workouts.

Pregnancy – the feeling of dryness in your mouth is a very common symptom when you are expecting a baby. This is partially because your body needs enough water for two now. Moreover, your hormones go crazy and this can affect your oral health.