The Mouth

The human mouth can be associated with many wonderful things such as eating, kissing, and smiling. It appears it's just all 'good.' But here's a reality check, especially for those romantics, did you know that the mouth is one of the dirtiest parts of the body? Isn't that a horrible piece of knowledge. Did you also know that for this reason being bitten by a stranger - don't ask, but it has been known to happen, is a very serious issue.

Mouths are full of bacteria. There are more than three dozen species of different bacteria that reside happily in our mouths.
Excuse me I just had the urge to get up and brush my teeth (and gums and the rest of my mouth!)

Now where were we?

Oh the bacteria. This bacteria is not all bad, there are what is called good bacteria that calls our mouths home. And just as well, as one of these good bacteria suppresses a nasty little fungal infection commonly know as thrush (although you've probably heard of it being else where), but lets not get the two mixed up. The official name for this fungus is candida albicans. This fungus can commonly grow whilst you are on a course of antibiotics. Antibiotics not only kill the 'bad bacteria' in your body that may be causing you a painful infection, but it also kills the 'good' bacteria, resulting in different infections such as thrush. Thrush usually presents itself as yellow sores on the tongue which can become quite painful. There are over the counter preparations you can take for this, just ask your pharmacist.

As for the bad bacteria, well, if your immune system becomes compromised for some reason (just being generally run down can do it), then the bad bacteria in your mouth can have a field day (or should I say a 'mouth day'). You can get anything from tonsillitis, to weird kinds of sores in your mouth.

Probably the most common infection related to this 'bad bacteria' are sores in the mouth called 'canker sores'. These are simply open sores that can arise anywhere in your mouth, from the inside of your lips, to your tongue, to the mucous membranes of your cheeks (that's the inside of your cheek). Girls tend to get these during their teens, and often into adulthood, right before your period (Yay! Another wonderful premenstrual gift we have been blessed with). Again see your pharmacist for an ointment that will provide you with some relief while it is healing, some women have been known to crack open a vitamin E capsule and rub it on the sore, apparently that may give some relief (just don't go drinking the stuff).

Nutritional deficiencies such as iron, and B vitamins (especially folic acid) will increase the likelihood of bacteria breeding, resulting in some kind of oral infection. Any sore in your mouth that is painless and doesn't heal within two weeks or more, see your doctor or dentist, as it's the painless sores that can be the most dangerous (especially if you are a smoker, as around 95% of people who have oral cancers are smokers).

Basically if you have a healthy diet, look after your mouth, by using mouth washes after you brush (as many have antibacterial preparations in them), don't smoke, and don't get run down, your mouth should remain in tip top condition.

- Louise Ganey