Xerostomia: a dry mouth, and why it matters

Xerostomia simply means a mouth that is persistently dry. It sounds minor and it is not, which is why it has a name of its own.

It becomes common after 60, and the usual cause is not ageing itself but medication. A great many ordinary prescriptions reduce saliva: tablets for blood pressure, for low mood, for allergies, for bladder problems, for pain. Taking several at once compounds it.

Saliva washes the mouth, neutralises acid and protects the surface of teeth. Without enough of it, decay accelerates sharply and gums suffer, which is how somebody with good teeth all their life starts losing them at 70.

It also carries taste. Food becomes bland, which is a large part of why appetite falls.

Chewing and swallowing dry food becomes hard work, so people drift towards soft, moist, often sweet things. That means less protein and more sugar, at exactly the age when the reverse is wanted.

Dentures fit and hold less well without saliva too, which compounds the same problem. Speaking for long becomes tiring, and some people withdraw from conversation because of it.

Sip water through the day rather than in large amounts occasionally. Ease off caffeine and alcohol, both of which dry you further. Sugar-free chewing gum or lozenges prompt saliva. Saliva substitutes are available from a pharmacy.

Most importantly, ask your doctor or pharmacist whether anything you take is the cause, because sometimes there is an alternative. And tell your dentist, since a dry mouth needs closer watching. This is general guidance, not medical advice.