Terese thinks that Lemon Heads are a disgusting breakfast item. And she's right.
Problem: My mouth is even more dry than it has been recently, and when I wake up during the night to take a pain pill, a couple swigs of water just isn't enough to cut through the dry sticky morning mouth.
Julia solution: I chew on a lemon candy or two, and presto! Lemon Heads with their zingy tartness creates enough saliva for me to take a pain pill without it sticking anywhere it shouldn't on it's way to my stomach. I swish my mouth with extra water, fluff up my pillow, remind Lulu that all three of us need to share the covers, and go back to sleep for a few hours.
Brilliant, I thought. And tried patting myself on the back. .::ouch::.
The thing is, I know that coating my mouth and teeth with sugar and then falling back to sleep could be real problematic dental-health wise. I tried using some sugar-free candy instead, and found out rather quickly that sugar free candies -- especially ones with sorbitol -- only compound my problems since they seem to cause diarrhea.
I'm not moving terribly fast these days and running to the bathroom isn't my strong suit.
I think I'll send John on a quest to find some lemon or citrus sugar free AND sorbitol free candy.
Anyone have other ideas?
12 comments:
If he finds some that are sugar and sorbitol free, please share that info -- but I'll be surprised. Any sweetener ending in "ol" will have the same effect, BTW. People have told me that the tiny amount that's in sugar-free candy couldn't possibly affect me. And yet, it does.
Hang in there, each day should be a little better than the one before.
Have you tried dried ginger bites? They make me pucker but I can feel my glands working extra hard. PLUS, ginger has a sleepy effect.
Sympathy to you as I go thru this also. One thing that slightly helps me is to use waterpik before going to bed to push extra water in my mouth after brushing my teeth. Sugar free not my friend either. Nighttime, no suggestions. I get up at night just to get a drink of water. Agree with Betsi, keep up the good healing work.
I like MedActive lozenges. They contain xylitol and sucralose. Another product I use is called SalivaSure, also with xylitol. They are little white tablets sort of like the Numoisyn lozenges which, unfortunately, are no longer being manufactured. They were my absolute favorite.
So here is my solution and I've been using it for 3 years: Hansen's Diet Creamy Root Beer Soda. It has licorice extracts, Madagascan vanilla, wintergreen, anise and acacia. Not sure why it works but it does.
I take Evoxac (Cevimeline) two or three times a day. Since I've started taking it, I barely notice my dry mouth.
For sugar-free hard candies without sugar alcohols, I like Petite Deceit candies sweetened with stevia. Stevia never gave me any digestive upsets the way anything ending in "-itol" will do, but I had to give it up as it was a dietary trigger for Interstitial Cystitis symptoms. Sigh. So I know how you feel. I had just ordered a bunch of those candies, too. They work great for dry mouth.
Hi Julia:
I use Xylimelts for dry mouth. Amazon and Drugstore.com carry them. About $18 for 80 tablets, mint or regular. Just place one on a molar or gum and two, one on each side will last me all night. I usually use four a day and they do not cause any upset. Xylitol is supposed to stop tooth decay. I have a very dry mouth and have tried a lot of products, this works the best for me. Good luck to you. Best wishes, Judy in sunny CA.
Xylimelts work! recommended by my dental hygienist. Can't sleep without them and they don't harm your teeth. Hope york mending quickly!
Lemon juice. Or orange Juice. Have some lemon chunks and squeeze them in to some water. I'm so conditioned to lemon that thinking about it can sometimes make me salivate.
Julia,
Try slippery elm lozenges, they're not the best tasting, but I believe they are even recommended on the sjogren's website. I also use the capsules when I have digestive problems. I use xylitol mints and gum daily and they really work for dry mouth.
The hospital used citic acid when doing a scan on saliver ducts to find blockage - it certainly produced saliva!!!!
Post a Comment