Thrush on Tongue

Also known as oral thrush in medical terms, it is a condition in which the fungus Candida albicans, forms and holds on the lining of the mouth. People who are prone to this are newborn babies, people who use dentures or those who take inhaled corticosteroids. People who have very weak immune systems too get this infection quite easily. The commonly experienced symptoms are white colored legions on the tongue, inside of cheeks, gums, roof of mouth and tonsils, pain, cracked corners of the mouth, bleeding from the legions, a cottony feel in mouth and loss of sense of taste. Below is the list of causes which lead to such an infection in a person, followed by the treatments and home remedies to get rid of the same.

Causes

Thrush on the tongue presents itself in a person when his immune system is considerably weakened. In a normal person, the immune system repels invading organisms like the viruses, fungi and bacteria, and this helps in maintaining the balance between the good and the bad microbes in the body system. But when this fails to happen, infections such as oral thrush might occur.

The weakness in immune system can be caused due to certain illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, and HIV/AIDS. Another reason behind weakness of the immune system is intake of certain drugs, such as antibiotics and prednisone. In newborns it is caused due to the prevalence of vaginal yeast infections in the pregnant woman, which gets passed on to the baby.

Treatment

The treatment is designed in such a way, that the spread of the fungus can be stopped. Doctors generally recommend eating plain yogurt, along with acidophilus capsules or acidophilus liquid as the first treatment. If this does not prove to be effective, doctors may recommend antifungal medication as well. Besides these, there are a number of remedies which a person should follow to get rid of this.

Change of Diet
Foods, such as those that contain sugar, juices, candies, white breads, flour, cheese, nuts, should be eliminated from the diet. This is because these foods feed on the Candida bacteria and thus, may cause it to grow even more.

Vitamin C Supplements
Vitamin C helps in boosting the immune system of the body, thereby helping it to ward off all infections and other harmful bacteria, and this includes the Candida bacteria as well.

Baking Soda
An effective home remedy is to rinse the mouth with baking soda, twice a day. Baking soda helps in fighting the Candida bacteria, thereby killing and eliminating it. In order to rinse the mouth with baking soda, dilute two tablespoons of it in one cup of water.

Probiotic Supplements
Probiotic supplements, replenish the healthy bacteria of the digestive tract. This helps in creating an environment in which the nutrients are able to reach the organs and systems of the body. Thus, taking these supplements, helps in the overall treatment.

Thrush on the tongue can be prevented, provided the person takes a few precautions. Maintaining oral hygiene by brushing the teeth twice a day and regularly visiting a dentist, eating yogurt everyday, getting vaginal yeast infections treated as soon as they occur and finally eliminating sugary and yeast containing foods from the diet, will go a long way in keeping oral thrush at bay.