Mouth ulcers and treatment

Almost everyone experiences painful mouth ulcers atleast once in a lifetime. Mouth ulcers are also known as canker sores or aphthous ulcers. They are small lesions that outgrow in your mouth or at the base of your gums. They can take the joy out of eating and make talking distressful.  Mouth ulcers usually disappear within a few weeks, however if you have a mouth ulcer that lasts for longer, you should seek the advice of a doctor.

Some things have been identified to trigger mouth ulcers. Some of them are

• Stress

• Lack of regular sleep habits

• Trauma, from ill-fitting dentures, fractured teeth, or fillings 

• Dysfunctional immunity 

• Harsh toothpastes and mouthwashes 

• Deficiency of Vitamin B12 and zinc

• Orthodontic treatment

• Infections 

• Stomach conditions like celiac disease and irritable bowel syndrome.

There are three types of mouth ulcers

• Minor
  Minor canker sores are small mouth ulcers that heal within one to two weeks with no scarring.

• Major
  Major canker sores are larger and deeper than minor ones. They may take longer to heal (up to six weeks). They may cause scarring too. 
• Herpes ulcers
  Herpes ulcers are minuscule in size, occur in clusters of 10 to 100, and often affect adults. They heal without scarring within one to two weeks.

Family history may also have a role to play in mouth ulcer occurrence.  

The pain and the distress of mouth ulcers may lead to poor eating and culminate in deficiencies and compromise health and immunity in the long run.

Some simple tips may help you deal with the pain and distress of mouth ulcers -

• Applying analgesic pain relieving gel

• Rinsing mouth with saltwater 

• Applying ice to canker sores

• Taking nutritional supplements like folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and zinc

Certain products can help you to relieve the pain of ulcers

Analgesic gels

Analgesic gels containing Choline salicylate, Lignocaine hydrochloride, Benzalkonium chloride and Cetalkonium chloride have found to numb the pain of mouth ulcers. They have been proven to reduce the frequency, duration and symptoms associated with the ulcers too. One can try a mouth ulcer gel like QuikKool to get relief from mouth ulcer pain. 

Zinc

Zinc supplements are also found to be efficient in managing recurrent mouth ulcers.

Vitamin B12

Deficiency of Vitamin B12 has been implicated in the development of mouth ulcers. Vitamin B12 supplementation has been found to be effective in relieving pain and improving the quality of life for patients with mouth ulcers. 

If you get mouth ulcers recurrently, you should consult a physician and get pathological investigation done to rule out deficiencies.  It may also help to avoid potentially irritating foods like citrus fruits, spicy snacks, fried foods and carbonated drinks. Also be sure to avoid harsh toothpastes and mouthwashes. Quit smoking and avoid tobacco products completely. Choose foods loaded with fiber like lentils and whole grains. Also be sure to maintain good oral hygiene by brushing regularly after every meal and rinsing your mouth. Also assure that you get adequate sleep. Be sure to use only soft bristle toothbrushes

To summarize, mouth ulcers are common and affect at least 20% of the population4, and though usually harmless they are painful and can seriously interfere with quality of life. Mouth ulcers can be managed with simple oral hygiene, supplementation and use of analgesic gels. 

What causes mouth ulcers?

Just because ulcer is linked with this word, it doesn’t define the severity of the condition but it should not be taken easy either. Mouth ulcers  also known as canker sores are normally small, painful lesions that develop in your mouth or at the base of your gums. They can make eating, drinking, and talking uncomfortable. Women (more than men), adolescents, and people with a family history of mouth ulcers are at higher risk for developing mouth ulcers.

Mouth ulcers aren’t contagious and usually go away within one to two weeks. However, if you get a mouth ulcer that is large or extremely painful or if it lasts for a long time without healing, you should seek the advice of a doctor.

Causes of mouth ulcer :

There is no definite cause behind mouth ulcers. However, some of them have been identified. These include:

• minor mouth injury from dental work, hard brushing, sports injury, or accidental bite

• emotional stress or lack of sleep, toothpastes and mouth rinses that contain sodium lauryl sulfate

• food sensitivities to acidic foods like strawberries, citrus, and pineapples, and other            trigger foods like chocolate and coffee

• lack of essential vitamins, especially B-12, zinc, folate, and iron

• allergic response to mouth bacteria

• dental braces

• hormonal changes during menstruation

• emotional stress or lack of sleep

• bacterial, viral, or fungal infections

In today’s fast paced life, due to irregular and unhealthy diet, one of the most common problems is acidity which is a result of skipping any of the meals from our meal regime. And, if not this, then we make it happen by choosing our meal which generally lacks the alkalising effect and drives our metabolism way beyond its domain where it can hardly perform its attributed function and ends up leaving the adverse effects on the various parts of the body. Its unfavourable effect in the oral cavity generally leads to mouth ulcers. 

Mouth ulcers are also caused by any cuts or injuries inside mouth. It leads to severe pain, which is constant, excruciating & becomes worse while eating, drinking or any act which has mouth involvement like singing, talking. 

The most common form of mouth ulcers is Recurrent Aphthous stomatitis. It mostly occurs on the inner cheek, inner lip, tongue, soft palate, floor of the mouth. However, there are many mouth ulcer gels available in the market like Ora-heal, Dentogel, Anabel and many more share the list. There is a product called QuikKool by Piramal which is superbly amazing in its quick pain relief action to treat mouth ulcers. It helps in providing cooling comfort.

QuikKool has:

• Lignocaine Hydrochloride- Acts on the nerve endings and relieves from the pain.

• Choline Salicylate- Soothes the wound and aids in healing faster.

• Benzalkonium Chloride- Provides anti-bacterial protection from further aggravation of the wound.

All that you need to know about mouth ulcers

Mouth ulcers are typically sores that affect the soft tissues of the mouth such as gums, cheeks, tongue, lips, and floor or roof of the mouth. These are also known as mouth sores or canker sores. Being generally harmless it resolves on its own within 1-2 weeks, however, it can cause tremendous irritation and discomfort during the time it persists. Since it cures by itself most of the times, you need not consult any dentist or GP but if the ulcer in mouth lasts for more than 3 weeks, you may have to get it diagnosed to rule out other underlying conditions. 

Where does mouth ulcer generally appear?

A mouth ulcer is a very common condition which can strike anyone of any age, anytime. A mouth ulcer or mouth sore can appear anywhere in the mouth. It could be on the cheeks, tongue, gums or the roof and floor of the mouth. 

How does a mouth ulcer or tongue ulcer look? 

Ulcers in mouth can appear white, pink or bright red, oval or round shaped sore on the soft tissues of the mouth. Moreover, it is possible to have multiple sores in the mouth at a given time as they may spread and grow. 

What causes a mouth ulcer?

It is not quite clear what are the mouth ulcer causes, however, there are several basic assumptions as to what might give your mouth an irritating wound.

• Poorly fitted dentures or braces – these may brush against your mouth and cause an injury to the soft tissues. 

• Accidentally biting the inside of your cheek or tongue while talking or eating – We all have done that and we know how painful a mouth ulcer due to this it can get

• A hard food – such as apple or a snack which may leave your mouth bruised for some time.

• Stress and anxiety – this may not be a number one cause for mouth ulcer but it is believed that excessive stress may injure your delicate mouth 

• Hormonal changes – some women routinely develop mouth ulcers during the onset of their menstrual cycle

• Smoking – smoking or trying to quit smoking may give you an uncomfortable sore or mouth ulcer

• Certain foods – such as spicy foods, chocolates, nuts etc can cause a mouth ulcer

• Other reasons – like an infection, viral fever, herpes in the mouth, side effect of some medication, gastrointestinal disorder, anaemia, vitamin deficiency etc may also cause a mouth ulcers or canker cores

How to treat a mouth ulcer? 

Thankfully, mouth ulcer is one such condition that when left to itself clears on its own within a short period of time. However, when the ulcer hurts a lot and is extremely distressing, one can resort to mouth ulcer treatments or mouth ulcer remedies to speed up the healing process.

Mouth ulcer gel – Several brands of mouth ulcer gesl are easily available in the market and are extremely efficient when it comes to healing a mouth ulcer. One must always look for brands such as QuikKool, Orahelp etc. as they contain lignocaine, which gives immediate relief from pain and choline salicylate, which soothes the wound and aids in faster healing.

Mouthwash – antimicrobial mouthwashes not only make you recover faster from the sore but also prevent further infection of the mouth sores

Painkiller mouth ulcer gel, paste, lozenge etc – these are usually prescribed by a GP or dentist when the ulcer has been too tough or lasted for over 3 weeks.

If you are prone to mouth ulcers very often then consult your dentist or GP to understand the reason as it may point out to a bigger underlying health condition.