My tongue is furry

23 May 2014

My tongue is furry

If your tongue is furry, there is no need to be alarmed. It is usually a harmless and temporary condition. Often, the furry appearance is just caused by too much keratin accumulating on your papillae or taste buds. Keratin is the same substance which basically make up your hair and nails. And as you do with your hair and nails, you can “trim” your overgrown papillae. By brushing your tongue regularly, you rid it of the excess keratin that is responsible for making it look furry.

Normally, the amount of keratin that regularly forms on our tongue is equal to the amount of keratin that is regularly eliminated when we swallow our food. Sometimes though, things happen that can disrupt this balance. If for instance, you go on a soft diet, you may not be taking in food that are abrasive enough to knock off excess keratin. On the other hand, if your tongue gets irritated a lot, as when you smoke or you drink too much hot beverages, it may develop more keratin than it normally does, much like you develop callouses (which is also made of keratin) on your hands and feet when you use them too much. In both instances, keratin will build up on the tongue and give it a furry appearance. Unless contained, the buildup in keratin can make the papillae grow by as much as 15 times their usual length, in which case the tongue will look more hairy than furry.

The colour of a furry tongue may vary but usually it is black. The pigmentation is caused by naturally-occurring mouth bacteria or yeast that has accumulated in the overgrown papillae along with trapped minute food particles. Aside from the unsightly appearance, most people with furry tongue do not notice any other unpleasant symptom. An exception though is when an accelerated growth in the Candida albicans yeast leads to oral thrush, a fungal infection characterised by soreness, a burning sensation and difficulty in swallowing. This condition is temporary and can be easily treated with anti-fungal medication and regular practice of good oral hygiene. Of course, since there is that mat of extra-long papillae where food debris can easily get caught and where they can decompose, there is that possibility of also developing bad breath.

How then do you treat your furry tongue condition? Oral health experts recommend that when you brush your teeth, make sure that you also brush your tongue. Better still, use a separate tongue cleaner or tongue scraper. Toothbrushes are designed specifically for brushing the teeth which have a solid structure. They may not be as effective when combing though the landscape of the tongue’s surface, what with its many tiny bumps and ridges. For this purpose, dentists and other oral health care specialists recommend using tongue cleaners or tongue scrapers that are ergonomically contoured to conform with the anatomy of the tongue and are specifically designed to lift and trap plaque deposits along with the excess keratin. Some also suggest double rinsing regularly with a diluted peroxide solution will help prevent furry tongue from recurring. Effectively cleaning the tongue is just as important as flossing and brushing the teeth to maintain good overall oral health.