A mouth at age 50 enters a whole new world marked by a set of problems you never dreamed of when your mouth was filled with bubble gum and the latest slang.
Celebrate Great Taste!
Expect taste buds to fade gradually with age. But the senses of taste and smell can disappear quickly in diabetics—or overnight as a result of stroke, Parkinson’s or Huntington’s Disease. Have the loss checked out—and make food more palatable with herbs and spices.
Don’t Swallow Bitterness!
Menopause often leads to hormonal imbalance or to vitamin or mineral deficiency, resulting in a bitter taste or burning in the mouth. Detection of the deficiency can lead to correction of the problem.
Tender is the Face
TMJ (temporomandibular joint disorder) and other forms of myofascial pain dysfunction syndrome can cause pain and tenderness in jaw muscles whenever you eat or yawn or otherwise move your jaw. TMJ can be treated in a number of ways.
Too Dry for Comfort
Dry mouth is a common occurrence in mature mouths. Often it’s caused by medications, but sometimes it results from an auto-immune disorder that primarily targets women over 40. Sjogren’s Syndrome can cause not only dry mouth and dry eyes but swelling, difficulty chewing or swallowing, dry cough, cavities, oral yeast infections, dry nose, throat and lungs or fatigue. Once we’ve identified the cause of the dry mouth condition, we can recommend ways to stimulate saliva production.
As your dentist, we’ll help you watch for suspicious signs associated with these four common problems.
