The tongue is a piece of muscle which has so much more to it than anyone may have thought about. It can be as sweet as honey or as bitter as poison. All said and done, this piece of boneless mass cannot be ignored. There are several functions that tongue can perform. It helps in chewing and swallowing the food, helps in speaking words and lot more.
The appearance of tongue plays an important role in indicating how healthy a person is. Human tongue may appear pale or sometimes inflamed and red indicating several health conditions.
Actually it is a harmless phenomenon but if there is persistent pressure and friction caused by the teeth, the tongue may become inflamed and red. To get rid of teeth marks on the tongue, it is necessary to find and correct the underlying problem which has caused it.
What Causes Teeth Marks On Tongue?
Teeth marks on the tongue can occur mainly due to two reasons.
Sometimes, the average width of the tongue is wide in some people and that may be the cause for teeth marks on tongue. The tongue can become enlarged due to several other reasons such as hypothyroidism where the thyroid hormone secretion decreases. This can result in enlargement of the tongue. The tongue may become swollen if there is retention of water in the body.
Teeth marks on the tongue are common among people who suffer from sleep apnea. In this condition, there is an alteration in the breathing during sleep. The tongue falls back on the floor of the mouth and the teeth presses on the border of the tongue leading to teeth marks.
Vitamin B12 deficiency and sinusitis are other causes for teeth impression on the tongue. Temporal-mandibular joint syndrome can be one of the reasons for enlargement and swollen tongue.
How To Get Rid Of Teeth Marks On Tongue?
Teeth marks on tongue are benign and harmless condition. The most important thing that a person has to do is to keep space between the teeth when he is not eating or chewing food. In a way he has to see that constant pressure is not applied to the border of the tongue. Avoid clenching as this habit is one of the most common causes for teeth marks on the tongue.
If the underlying cause is thyroid hormone insufficiency, adequate hormone replacement therapy will help treat thyroid deficiency and thus the enlargement of tongue. Once the tongue returns back to its original size and width, the marks will reduce on its border.
Adequate supplement of vitamin B12 in case of its deficiency will gradually reduce the marks on the border of the tongue.
If teeth are misaligned and they are responsible for teeth marks on the tongue, proper alignment of teeth will help to reduce pressure on the tongue and thus prevent teeth marks.