Skin tags are a common occurrence for people of all ages. They tend to develop in areas where your skin rubs against itself, such as your armpits or eyelids. While you might notice some bumps that look like skin tags on your tongue, they’re likely something else, such as a cyst or area of extra tissue. Skin tags only grow on the outer layer of your skin, not the mucous membranes that line your inner mouth and tongue.
Keep reading to learn more about what might cause a skin tag-like growth on your tongue and how to remove it.
Irritation fibroma
A fibroma is a small, noncancerous cluster of tissue. They can occur in many areas, including your tongue. It might be the same color as your tongue or slightly darker or lighter. They’re usually caused by some sort of minor injury, such as biting your tongue or rubbing it against a rough tooth or retainer. When this happens, it’s known as an irritation fibroma.
Most irritation fibromas are painless and don’t require treatment. If you want to remove it, your doctor can perform a surgical excision.
Human papilloma virus
The human papilloma virus (HPV) is a type of sexually transmitted disease. While most people associate HPV with the genitals, it can also affect your mouth and throat. This is usually caused by oral sex.
When HPV affects your mouth, it can cause several types of bumps inside your mouth, including on your tongue. One of the more common growths, called squamous cell papilloma, can look a lot like a skin tag on your tongue. These flesh-colored bumps are noncancerous warts. You might notice just one or a cluster of several tag-like growths in one spot. They can show up on your tongue, lips, or throat.
While they’re harmless, they can sometimes get in the way of eating and drinking. If you find them bothersome, your doctor can surgically excise them, or freeze them off with cryosurgery.
Regardless of whether you want to remove the growths, it’s best to check in with your doctor. There are many variations of HPV, and some of them increase your risk of certain types of oral cancer. Your doctor can confirm whether the growth on your tongue is cancerous by doing a simple biopsy.
Warning signs
In most cases, a growth resembling a skin tag on your tongue is harmless. However, it’s always best to get any new tongue bumps checked out by your doctor just to be sure.
You should also see your doctor as soon as possible if you also notice any of the following symptoms:
changes in size, texture, or color of the growth
pain in your mouth that doesn’t go away
open wounds in your mouth that won’t heal
red or white patches inside your mouth
throat pain or tightness
numbness
voice changes
unexplained weight loss
trouble chewing or swallowing
problems moving your jaw or tongue
While many of these can be signs of a minor underlying condition, they can also be early symptoms of oral cancer.
The bottom line
Skin tags don’t grow on your tongue. However, several things that often resemble skin tags can grow on your tongue. While they’re usually not a sign of anything serious, it’s best to get any new bump on your tongue checked out by your doctor to rule out any underlying condition that needs treatment.
Your teeth are a complex structure made up of different parts. You may only think about them when you smile, but teeth assist with chewing food properly, speaking clearly, and they even give shape to your face. Building and maintaining strong, healthy teeth ensures that you can perform these daily functions without difficulty. Learn more about how you can make your teeth stronger.
Building Strong Teeth
Establishing and maintaining a good oral hygiene routine is the best way to keep your teeth strong and healthy. Here's what your daily oral care should include:
Brush your teeth twice a day
Use an interdental cleaner, like dental floss, to remove food particles, plaque, and bacteria between the teeth
Visit the dentist regularly for professional cleanings and early detection and treatment of oral issues
Foods For Strong Teeth
Did you know that the foods you eat are an important part of building strong teeth? Healthy teeth, like the rest of your body, need you to consume nutritional foods. Calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin A help build and protect tooth enamel (the outer layer of your teeth). Here are some foods with high amounts of these nutrients:
Milk
Plain yogurt
Cheese
Leafy greens like kale, collard greens, and spinach
Calcium-fortified foods; cereal, canned sardines, tofu, and orange juice
Protein-rich food like meat, poultry, fish, and eggs
Fruits and vegetables are a source of vitamin C, which is good for healthy gums. Eating fruits and veggies can stimulate saliva production. Saliva contains minerals like calcium, fluoride, and phosphate ions, which keep the surface of your teeth strong. Saliva also washes away food particles and debris from teeth and gums. Remember to drink plenty of water throughout the day. This is an easy way to keep your mouth clean and avoid bad breath from a dry mouth.
What Foods to Avoid
While consuming the right foods can help make teeth strong, excessive snacking on sugary chips, candy, and baked treats can cause tooth decay. Cavities form when sugar and bacteria in the mouth combine and release acids that erode tooth enamel. Minimize how often you and your children consume these types of snacks. You could even try healthier snacking alternatives like almond nuts and cashews. They are filled with nutrients that are good for your teeth.
Healthy and strong teeth are a definite reason to smile. All you need is a consistent combination of dental hygiene practices, healthy eating, and regular dental care to make your teeth stronger. Remember that what you eat affects your oral health, so try opting for nutritious snacks and drink plenty of water - it's great for your overall health too.
The underside of your tongue isn't something that you would normally think about if everything is functioning as it should. But just imagine if one morning, as you're eating breakfast, you discover that these folds underneath your tongue are painfully irritated. You may also notice that saliva is pooling in the area. Immediately, you would be concerned about what might be going on. These small folds are called the plica fimbriata, and they are just one of the many structures that make up the tongue and salivary glands.
Structures Under the Tongue
As the ENT Atlas explains, the plica fimbriata is an elevated crest of mucous membrane on the underside of your tongue. Here's a quick anatomy lesson to help you understand the exact location of these folds in your mouth.
Below your tongue is a horseshoe-shaped area of tissue known as the floor of the mouth. This flat area of soft tissue has a separate rising fold of tissue that connects it to the underside of the tongue, known as the lingual frenulum. The plica fimbriata consists of two raised folds that are located on both sides of where the lingual frenulum connects to the tongue, as seen in an illustration from StatPearls.
Plica Fimbriata and Your Salivary System
As a presentation from Semmelweis University outlines, the plica fimbriata is part of the salivary gland system in your mouth. The saliva that is produced near the floor of the mouth comes through the salivary glands and drains under the tongue through the sublingual and submandibular ducts. The plica fimbriata is one location where these ducts open to release saliva in the mouth.
Common Salivary Gland and Duct Issues
The salivary gland and duct system under your tongue can be disturbed by various oral health problems. If a salivary gland gets blocked by a calcified formation, also known as a salivary stone, the area can become painful and swollen, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. The stones — also called sialolithiasis — occur in the submandibular gland about 80% of the time.
If you think that you have a salivary stone, you should seek immediate care from your physician or dental professional. Sialolithiasis can be diagnosed with an ultrasound or a computerized tomography scan. Oftentimes, applying moist heat and massaging the salivary gland can help to relieve this condition. Anti-inflammatory medications, such as ibuprofen, can also help to reduce the swelling and pain associated with salivary stones.
If these first-line measures do not alleviate the condition, you may require surgery. As the Cleveland Clinic explains, if the stone is located near the surface, your doctor or dentist may be able to remove it in a quick in-office procedure. This would involve using local anesthesia and making a small incision to the area. If the stone is deep in the tissue, your doctor would possibly need to use a technique called salivary sialendoscopy. This involves using a tiny scope to visualize the duct while using a special tool to retrieve the stone. In most cases, patients recover well with no further issues.
Now that you know more about the structures underneath your tongue, you can feel empowered to discuss any issues that develop in this area with your dental professional.
Did you know your teeth play an important role in how you speak?
Sometimes, dental issues may impact or hinder a person’s pronunciation. Other issues that may affect speech include tongue thrust, immature swallow patterns, open bite or a cleft lip or palate.
A tongue thrust is when the tongue pushes on the teeth and causes pressure which leads to a change in the position of the teeth.
Untreated tongue thrusts or an immature swallow pattern can lead to crooked or misaligned teeth in children and adults. If the tongue thrust goes untreated, the pressure on the teeth will continue during and after orthodontic treatment. This is why some children and adults who have had braces in the past still have crooked or misaligned teeth even after the braces have been removed.
A normal swallow pattern includes the placement of the tongue against the hard palate with the tip of the tongue slightly behind the upper teeth.
However, a tongue thrust swallow pattern may have the tongue pushing directly behind the teeth causing the teeth to push forward. This may affect top teeth, bottom teeth or both sets of teeth and lead to an open bite.
Speech therapy can help correct a tongue thrust swallow pattern through the use of oral exercises and the correct placement of articulators.
A speech therapist can also work with a patient with a cleft lip or palate to improve the patient’s swallow pattern and speech sound production.
Some patients may require corrective surgery to help with these issues. However, after surgery he or she may continue to use patterns they used before surgery. A speech therapist can help re-teach the patient how to produce sounds and swallow correctly.
Speech therapy can be started before, during or after treatment in order to facilitate effective dental care. A speech therapist can be a great ally to help achieve and maintain a healthy, beautiful smile.
If you see your dentist regularly, you know that the oral examination is among the first items on the agenda. After reviewing your updated medical history, your dentist will conduct a visual assessment of the inside of your mouth including all soft tissues like the tongue, floor of the mouth, roof of the mouth and gums. From there, your dentist will likely evaluate the lymph nodes around the jaw and neck and the muscles responsible for chewing. What exactly are all these checks for?
The routine examination provided by your dentist is intended to mark any changes for monitoring, or to uncover any immediate issues in the mouth prior to undergoing the cleaning portion of the appointment. Dentists are often the first in your medical team to diagnose and treat or refer to a medical doctor for treatment.
Oral Health Issues Your Dentist Can Diagnose
Oral Cancers
Oral cancers can often go unnoticed, as they can present as a minor sore and are sometimes painless. Your dentist will be looking for signs that there could be changes occurring in the tissues. Often, these changes present in the outer tissues on the lips, cheeks and tongue. Less often these changes can be present on the floor of the mouth or inside the tissues of the cheeks, gums and floor of the mouth. Red or white patches (or a combination of the two) will be noted and explored by your dentist as well as any small canker-sore-like ulcers that have gone at least two weeks without improvement. Surface changes on the soft tissues of the mouth, unusual bleeding or quickly loosened teeth may also be signs of a potential concern in the mouth. Oral cancers of the mouth or throat can also be indicated by hoarseness of the voice for an extended period of time.
Oral cancers can be dangerous; however, early intervention and treatment has produced a good success rate.
Cysts
During the X-Ray portion of the dental exam, your dentist will produce radiographic images which tell the story of what’s happening inside the tissues, below the gums. Oral cysts of the maxilla (upper jaw structure) or the mandible (lower jaw structure) are the most common place for cysts to appear in the body. Cysts generally present as a self-inflating balloon containing fluid. Most cysts are benign, but some cysts cause bone resorption as they inflate, putting the structures of the teeth and jaw at risk.
If your dentist identifies a cyst in your gums, they will first evaluate the potential risk of leaving the cyst as it is. If the cyst is benign and it does not present any risk to the surrounding structures, you will likely be advised to leave the cyst as it is. If, however, your dentist determines that the cyst is presenting a risk to the structures of the mouth, removal or draining will be explored.
Bruxism
Bruxism, or unconscious clenching and grinding of the teeth at night, can often be missed as a sign of a potential problem if there is no sleeping partner who can attest to the sound of teeth grinding at night. The result can be a patient who suffers from frequent headaches, soreness in the face and ears, or difficult or painful chewing.
Your dentist is trained to recognize the signs of bruxism and its impact on the teeth and temporomandibular joints. Patients suffering the effects of clenching or grinding can present with gum recession, sensitive or cracked teeth and lost fillings. This results from the extreme forces that the jaw is exerting on thee teeth, ligaments, gums and bones while the patient is asleep.
In order to treat symptoms of bruxism, your dentist will likely suggest that you be fitted for a custom night guard. Night guard appliances come in various types, including a U-shaped dental arch that fits over the teeth of the entire upper or lower dental arch, or one that sits only on the front of the teeth. The intention of this night guard is to provide spacing between the upper and lower dental arches to prevent the teeth from coming together and wearing on each other.
Doing Your Part
The fact that issues such as cancer, cysts and bruxism can occur without us knowing is an important reminder to maintain a regular visitation schedule with our dentists and to adhere to recommended oral hygiene standards. Doing what we can at home in terms of regularly brushing and flossing our teeth between visits and eliminating lifestyle habits that put us at risk is the best way to limit the chances of an oral health issue arising. While we do what we can to stay healthy and well, it is still important to see our dentists for regular exams to ensure early diagnosis and intervention before the problem becomes advanced.
Jawzrsize and similar products or programs include chewing on a silicone ball to reportedly strengthen and lift the facial and jaw muscles. While some people may report benefits from these devices, there are also some risks to consider.
In this article, we will discuss what the Jawzrsize is, its effectiveness, and any possible side effects it may have.
What is Jawzrsize?
Jawzrsize is the name of a device designed to give a workout to the jaw. The device itself is a hollow, ball-shaped piece of rubber. It includes silicone inserts designed to mold to the teeth and a person’s own bite to make the tool more comfortable to use.
After shaping the device to the person’s own teeth and bite, the exercise is simple. The user bites down on the silicone ball to provide resistance to the jaw muscles. The company offer a number of devices with different resistance levels, delivering from 20 to 50 pounds of resistance.
The Jawzrsize workout includes biting down on these resistance balls multiple times for 20–30 minutes at a time. Proponents of the workout suggest that it may increase muscle strength in the jaw and improve the shape and tone of the face over time.
The theory behind the tool is that the modern person does not chew as much as their ancestors did, which causes a deterioration in the facial muscles. Using this tool then allows the person to retrain these muscles.
Does it work?
The Jawzrsize device provides resistance to the jaw during each bite. As such, it may help strengthen the jaw muscles. An older study evaluating a similar silicone bite device found that it did increase maximum bite force and endurance. However, after the participants of the study stopped training, the results rapidly disappeared.
Endurance training for the jaw may have some use in helping people recover from jaw disorders. For example, a 2019 studyTrusted Source found that those with jaw pain who performed endurance training had lower markers of pain after 8 weeks.
However, the claim that the device provides a workout that the body does not normally get may be unfounded. In healthy individuals, the jaw and facial muscles get plenty of exercise from chewing, talking, or making facial expressions.
Chewing gum is another common way many people provide similar exercise for their jaw. A 2018 studyTrusted Source notes that chewing gum may help train the jaw to have a stronger force when biting, and it may be helpful with weaker jaws.
Purported benefits
According to the Jawzrsize website, the device is designed to work out the full range of the jaw as it bites. They state that this can give the jaw and face a stronger, leaner look. Proponents suggest that it may also help create a chiseled jaw and reduce fat on the face.
Using the Jawzrsize may lead to some enlargement, or hypertrophy, of the masseter muscles, which are large chewing muscles at the side of the face. However, while it may help strengthen the jaw, it is unlikely to provide other benefits.
The chewing, or masticatory, muscles do not tone or rejuvenate the face. They are simply the muscles involved in chewing. Exercising these muscles is not likely to alter a person’s face substantially.
Risks and side effects
While resistance devices may increase jaw strength, they also come with potential risks. The jaw gets plenty of exercise throughout normal activities during the day. Adding even more exercise may put the muscles at risk of issues, which may include:
Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders: Research suggests that long durations of chewing or clenching the jaw may result in TMJ disorders, which cause pain in the jaw joint and supporting muscles.
Dislocation: It may result from excessive chewing and cause the jaw to pop or click. It can also lead to TMJ disorders.
Headaches: A 2015 studyTrusted Source suggests there may be a link between chewing and headaches, particularly in those prone to tension headaches or migraines. Therefore, it may be advisable for certain people to avoid using chewing devices.
Dental problems: These may occur due to the force and excessive chewing in people with weaker teeth or other oral health issues.
Alternatives
Instead of using a chewing device, a person can chew gum to get similar benefits. Chewing gum may also help improve cognition. However, more research exploring this link is necessary. People should also be aware of any sugars in the gum and the gum being a potential choking hazard.
If a person has any concerns that they have a weak jaw or want it to be more functional, they should discuss it with their doctor.
Summary
The Jawzrsize device may help strengthen the muscles associated with chewing and biting. Proponents of the device claim that this will have numerous benefits for the face. However, there is not much scientific evidence to support this.
There are some risks of overexertion from using these devices, and the force of using them may pose risk to the mouth and teeth. The devices may also be unnecessary for most people, as the jaw gets plenty of exercise from daily activities, such as chewing and talking.
Patients who had their wisdom teeth extracted experienced improved tasting years after they were removed.
This is according to a new study carried out by the University of Pennsylvania.
The findings go against the acceptance that the removal of wisdom teeth can only negatively affect one’s taste. Consequently, it is one of the first studies to investigate the long-term impact of extraction on taste.
Enhanced taste
The study involved evaluating data from more than 1,200 patients who had undergone a chemosensory evaluation at Penn’s Smell and Taste Center over the a period of 20 years.
Within that group, around 890 patients had wisdom teeth extractions while around 360 had not.
All participants underwent a ‘whole-mouth identification’ test. This involved five concentrations of sodium chloride, sucrose, citric acid and caffeine.
Each was sipped, swished around and then spat out. Participants then reported whether it tasted salty, sweet, sour or bitter.
Those who had received extractions previously experienced an improvement in their tasting ability.
‘Surprising but fascinating’
‘Prior studies have only pointed to adverse effects on taste after extraction,’ said senior author Richard Doty, director of the Smell and Taste Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
‘It has been generally believed that those effects dissipate over time.
‘This new study shows us that taste function can actually slightly improve between the time patients have surgery and up to 20 years later.
‘It’s a surprising but fascinating finding. It deserves further investigation to better understand why it’s enhanced and what it may mean clinically.’
Subtle effects
The research team highlighted two reasons that could help to explain the results.
Extraction damage to the nerves that innervate taste buds towards the front of the mouth can provoke inhibition on nerves that serve the taste buds at the back of the mouth. This increases whole-mouth sensitivity.
There has also been well documented cases elsewhere of hypersensitivity after peripheral nerve injury from a surgery, such as an extraction.
Professor Doty added: ‘Further studies are needed to determine the mechanism or mechanisms behind the extraction-related improvement in taste function.
‘The effects are subtle but may provide insight into how long-term improvement in neural function can result from altering the environment in which nerves propagate.’
Are you suffering from dental issues? Do dental pain, swollen tissues, and bad breath keep irritating you despite following the best dental hygiene habits? Do you visit the best Dental care clinic center regularly but are still facing some dental issues? If you answered these questions as yes, it highlights some problems with your lifestyle choices. While you follow the advice of your family dentist New Britain, you should also see if you are living the best dental habits. In this post, we will talk about 5 bad habits, which are one of the key reasons for your compromised dental health:
Crunching, sucking and sipping
Love drinking soda and crunching the ice afterward, well you are doing nothing but harming your teeth and enamel. Ice is hard and brittle which might fracture your teeth. Similarly, sipping high in sugar cola or soda is another big problem. Too much sweet and acidic beverages are harmful to your teeth.
Using teeth instead of tools:
Did you just open a cork with your teeth? Do you use teeth as a tool to open packets? Are you used to of putting your teeth to work whenever you have to put anything back in shape like a bent knife or fork? If so, you must stop doing it now. Teeth are for chewing and shouldn’t be used as a tool. You may fracture them or weaken their edges by exerting unnecessary pressure.
Grinding teeth is not permitted:
Often grinding the teeth is a way people take to suppress their anxiety or frustration. You will be amazed to know that grinding your teeth is one of the common reasons for developing abnormal teeth bites or missing and crooked tooth condition. You should control the habit to maintain a proper smile and minimize your dentist’s bill.
Poor toothbrush choices:
If you are using a hard-bristled toothbrush, you are exposed to dental problems. The hard bristles of a toothbrush can push back the skin of the gum and thus expose your teeth’s roots to hot and cold temperatures, bacteria and much more.
Poor brushing, flossing and rinsing routine:
Yes, putting a routine in place for brushing, flossing and rinsing your mouth is very important. You need to do every properly to get the best results.
Dental injuries are one of the most common health-related problems that we face in our life. There are different kinds of dental issues and we should know which of them need emergency treatment. Swollen gums, broken teeth, infected tooth, broken dentures are some of the problems that require immediate care. It is why people suffering from such a problem should quickly contact an emergency dentist.
Broken Tooth
A broken tooth is one of the most common kinds of dental problem. Many sportspeople and athletes are prone to such an injury. Reasons may include blunt force trauma from either sporting equipment or direct contact during sport. Whatever the cause it is important to seek dental advice as soon as possible after injury to prevent tooth damage or loss.
Chipped Or Cracked Tooth
A cracked tooth may look like a minor issue but it can cause complications and/or severe pain if it involves the nerve in the tooth. Thus emergency dental help is critical. Sometimes if the tooth has nerve damage, the pain may become uncontrollable. So consult a reputed dentist who can diagnose and treat the problem in a timely fashion.
Gum Pain
Several teeth related problems can give rise to gum pain. Displaced or broken teeth or fractures of the jaw are some examples. It is wise to consult a Doctor and/or Dentist immediately after any sporting injury. Competent health professionals can diagnose and treat early trauma to minimise the chance of later complications. In addition this will provide a written record of the incident for insurance purposes.
Broken Denture
Dentures are made of acrylic and are not designed to be dropped. Emergency dentists can fix that broken denture on the spot so you can get to the wedding on time.
Loose Implants
Although implants failure only happens in 10% of cases it does happen, there are also instances where infection has caused loosening of implants. Issues such as these can be generally avoided if you take proper care of teeth and attend the Dentist for regular check ups.
These are some of the dental problems that require immediate medical and or dental assistance.
Depending on the cause and intensity, the pain and tenderness from an infected or decayed tooth can extend beyond the tooth and feel like a headache or earache. In fact, many common dental and oral health problems can result in symptoms, like ear pain. A dental exam is necessary to determine the cause of your symptoms, so you should schedule an appointment if your pain intensifies or lasts for more than a few days. Our dentist Dr. Mehrnoosh Darj offers cosmetic and general dentistry services in El Paso, Texas and surrounding areas for all your oral health care needs.
Dental issues that can cause earaches
Dental pain can be deceptive. Common oral health problems, like an abscessed tooth, an impacted wisdom tooth or molar, or even a cavity, can result in an earache. If you grind your teeth or clench your jaw, or have joint issues, like temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder or arthritis, you may also experience tightness in the jaw and pain that reaches up to your ears. In fact, many people mistakenly believe that their ear pain is caused by a problem, like an ear infection or wax buildup, only to learn that they actually need to visit the dentist.
When to see the dentist
Ideally, you should go to the dentist every six months to a year on average for preventive dental care, including a check-up and dental cleaning according to the American Dental Association (ADA). If you have ongoing oral health problems or have a higher risk for periodontal (gum) disease or underlying medical problems, like heart disease or diabetes, Dr. Darj may recommend more frequent visits.
But emergencies happen and some dental problems require immediate attention. Pain is usually the main sign that something’s wrong, so you shouldn’t wait more than a day or two to schedule an appointment if the pain persists.
Other signs of an oral health problem include:
Bleeding gums
Swollen, red, or tender gums
Persistent bad breath
Receding gums
Signs of infection, like pus, blisters, or sores on the gums or inside your mouth
Jaw pain
Hot and cold sensitivity
Trouble chewing your food
Loose teeth
Changes to your bite (how your teeth fit together when you close your mouth)
It can be difficult to tell the difference between a toothache or an earache, so it’s important not to ignore your symptoms to ensure that you get timely and accurate treatment. If you have an infection, you may need prescription medication to clear it up.
In the case of tooth decay or gum disease, the earlier you get treatment the better. Waiting too long can make your symptoms worse, and increase your risk of permanent damage or even tooth loss.
