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NetWellness provides the highest quality health information and education services created and evaluated by faculty of our partner universities.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
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NetWellness provides the highest quality health information and education services created and evaluated by faculty of our partner universities.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
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Dental and Oral Health (Adults) |
Smoking and the mouth02/20/2008 09:14PM |
What are the common mouth and tongue conditions related to smoking? Is a white tongue a common issue with smoking? Does the food we eat or alcohol assumption also cause a white tongue?
I am writing in response to your question of smoking and the relationship to alteration of oral mucosa and development of pathologies of the oral cavity.
There is a significant amount of information that discusses the causal relationship of tobacco smoking and genotypic and phenotypic alteration of the oral mucosa (covering of the oral cavity). The continuum covers the direct effects of smoke and drying action of heated air/smoke to oral cancer.
Now your inquiry concerns the "common" manifestations of smoking and changes that occur to the oral cavity and tongue. Besides the contents of tobacco smoke, the actual temperature and drying effects alter tissue consistency. This is evident in the practice of reverse smoking where the lit end is placed in the mouth and smoked.
The effects of this result in increased keratin production and a "white" patch or callous to form in proximity to the smoke. The drying effect has been associated with a generalized leukodema or translucent covering to occur on mucosal tissues. The by-products of smoking have been shown to produce molecular changes in response to the smoke that are associated with epithelial inflammation, periodontal inflammation and alteration of immune responses, salivary gland irritation, halitosis as a result of smoke and alteration of salivary flow, plaque and calculus formation on the tooth surfaces, decrease in wound healing to name but a few consequences of smoking.
There is a synergistic effect for development of oral pathologies and alcohol ingestion. The white covering you are concerned about is related to the drying or desiccative effects of alcohol, in addition to other molecular changes that can be related to the development of dysplasic changes and ultimately oral cancer.
The "white" tongue problem can be related to a combination of foods and beverages and also poor oral hygiene. The overgrowth of tongue papilla also can be associated with a white appearance and in many cases be associated with bad breath. The papilla elongates and increases the chance for food debris, bacteria, yeasts, and sloughed tissue to collect, resulting in bad fetid breath and a "white" appearance. In some cultures, the consumption of certain foods such as peppers with high Scovell numbers (habenaros and jalapeños) are associated with the development of white tongue and oral mucosa in response to the chemicals (capsaicin) and frequent ingestion of these products.
Hope this helps.
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Richard J Jurevic, DDS, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences School of Dental Medicine Case Western Reserve University |
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