Dry mouth is a listed and common symptom of PD, but I think when many PWPs go to see their doctor, it may not be their highest priority to talk to their doctor about it with the other PD symptoms possibly being more prominent in the patients mind.
Another consideration is that dry mouth is likely more common as we age. Another issue is that some medications are well known for causing dry mouth.
I get dry mouth at times and have had it bad enough where my tongue felt like it was glued to the roof of my mouth! That was a shocker to wake up and I could not move my tongue!
Dry mouth can also be a common symptom of Sjogren's Syndrome among other health issues that can also cause dry mouth.
Dry mouth can also contribute to tooth decay which is only going to make things worse in terms of overall health and total inflammatory load.
What I have found is that a very simple mix I make at home seems to help alleviate my dry mouth temporarily. I make a combination of xylitol, vegetable glycerine, distilled water and spearmint essential oil. I mix the granular xylitol at approximately 5% to 10% with approximately 5% to 10% vegetable glycerine. I add these two to the distilled water and then drops of spearmint essential oil to the mix to taste. Sometimes I use peppermint essential oil or both spearmint and peppermint oils. I shake this mix and then I fill a two ounce spray bottle with it and leave it on my nightstand, so on those rare occasions when my mouth gets dry at night, I reach over and put two sprays in my mouth and the dry mouth is controlled and refreshed by the essential oil. I try not to use more than two pumps because that is just enough to work and then I usually don't swallow any. When my dry mouth condition used to be worse and was noticeable during my waking hours, I used to carry another two ounce spray bottle in my pocket and spray as needed. Another advantage to this mix is that the xylitol can act to kill some bacteria as well as some biofilms as can the essential oils. Another benefit is that the combination of xylitol and vegetable glycerine has anti-irritant qualities as outlined in studies. This mix has other uses, but this is what I mainly use it for. I always use food grade vegetable glycerine and xylitol, the common sugar substitute, is already intended for internal consumption. A good quality essential oil is required.
I too suffer from dry mouth, and as a result did suffer from frequent sore tongue and rampant tooth decay. Xylitol gives me a headache. To solve the sore tongue and mouth discomfort problem I use combination of things
1. Isomalt lozenges. Isomalt is not metabolized and does not cause tooth decay
2. Halls sugar-free lozenges, for variety
3. Cevimeline, a prescription drug that causes salivation
To solve the tooth decay problem I ended up creating my own toothpaste, consisting of:
1. pH neutralized NAC, N-acetylcysteine, which breaks up biofilms
2. Serrapeptase, which also breaks up biofilms
3. Calcium ascorbate
4. All preserved in 40% alcohol, otherwise known as vodka
This recipe breaks up biofilms that form on teeth. My teeth feel smooth and slippery like they are supposed to, and the tooth decay has halted. My dentist was so impressed with the results that he called me "smarter than the average bear" and asked for the recipe.
If xylitol is not compatible, the vegetable glycerine is still effective on its own, I just like the synergy of the two together. Both are humectants and will tend to attract moisture to the area. The spray also makes an easy to apply skin moisturizer!
What a good idea. Another self-help is using peroxide to rinse your mouth twice a day morning and night. It's kills the bacteria, never have bad breath again. I use three percent found in drug stores and Walmart straight from the bottle.
If I may ask (if you don't mind as this is not directly related to your post)
1. how long have you had PD for?
and
2. When you look back at your life are you able to mark out the single biggest thing(s) that caused you to have PD?
Just two questions I like to ask people lately. For me ::
1. I've noticed symptoms for 2.5 years but officially dx 6 months ago
2. I'm guessing the root cause of my PD is
a. Continuous trauma and shock of physical abuse as a kid and
b. While still in Nigeria as a young person, I was once falsely accused of stealing some stuff and badly beaten by a mob which included continuously hammering a metal pole on my head
Perhaps my instinct for doing this is, maybe I'll eventually find a trend that might point to something(s) as the root of PD
If this was a reply to me, I do not have PD to the best of my knowledge, so I can't give an answer to your questions, but others here can..........anyone else?
I'm assuming you meant "Biotene" products which I have used previously. Yes, the dry mouth rinse was helpful! If you look at the ingredient list, it contains xylitol and glycerin also, which is fine, but I was trying to avoid some of the other ingredients in that mix. Here is a list of what is in Biotene Dry Mouth Oral Rinse:
yes I did mean Biotine. I was a dentist and suffered myself from burning mouth syndrome which is unrelated to PD. The Biotine has less "harmful" ingredients than the other oral care products. The Biotine has helped me and I have been using it for over 15 years.
I taught PD causes excess saliva or drooling and not dry mouth.
I think for some there can be many possible reasons for dry mouth such as Sjogren's syndrome, oral health issues, diabetes and hypertension which can be present along with PD. Another common cause is medications. Not all PD patients have the issue of drooling. In PD, dry mouth and drooling can co-exist according to this very short, but enlightening abstract that suggests that greater than 50% of PWPs may have dry mouth :
The other day I noticed that my lips were dry and slightly chapped so I used the xylitol/glycerine spray on them. I sprayed the tip of my finger and then rubbed my finger over my lips and that worked very well to normalize my chapped lips!
Art
I had mentioned that I use this home made dry mouth oral spray as a skin moisturizer sometimes, but according to this recent study, this glycerine /xylitol combination also has anti-inflammatory qualities and skin barrier enhancing qualities suggesting other potential uses besides as a remedy for dry mouth or for dry skin! Looks like I will have to experiment more with this spray!
I notice there is a post currently up on the forum discussing bedsores/pressure sores and it made me think about the dry mouth solution that I make because the combination of topical xylitol with vegetable glycerine is moisturizing, anti inflammatory and healing! Three things that should go a long way in trying to heal bedsores!
I imagine that substituting aloe vera gel or aloe vera juice for the distilled water would add to the healing effect. These three ingredients can be found at any Walmart or online and are not very expensive at all!
Okay, so I made up a small batch after giving this some consideration. I used 80% aloe vera gel in place of the distilled water with 10% xylitol and 10% vegetable glycerine. I stirred this mix and once most of the xylitol granules had dissolved, I put the cap on the jar and shook until the mix was clear again like the aloe gel I started with. I applied this on the back of my left hand and it dried fairly quickly. I suspect this mix will be quite beneficial for damaged skin and pressure sores while being rather comfortable on the skin. After a few minutes on the skin, the skin feels moisturized and not the least bit sticky or tacky!
I will be experimenting with this new mix and will report back at a later date.
As I mentioned in my last post, I would update on the aloe vera gel, xylitol and food grade glycerine mix that I use on the skin. It has worked well to keep my skin moisturized during this winter. I have been applying it to my face and it definitely works well for this purpose. As an added benefit, the face application has helped with dry eye issues! Since applying this everyday to my entire face including my eyelids, I almost never need to use eye drops any more! I imagine this is due to the moisturizing and anti inflammatory qualities of the aloe gel as well as the humectant and anti inflammatory qualities of the xylitol and food grade glycerine. Since dry eye is a symptom related to PD, I thought it was worth mentioning.
One other benefit I have found from the facial application is that my eye floaters have diminished by about 70%. Prior to this, the floaters have seemed to only increase over the years so a reduction of any amount is quite welcome!
Sorry I missed your reply as it went to my old forum name, "easilly", which now shows as "hidden". My new forum name is "chartist", but I am still Art.
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