A scalloped tongue, or rippled tongue, occurs when your body does not get certain minerals and vitamins. A rippled tongue looks bumpy or wavy, mostly when pressed by your teeth. This is because your tongue gets swollen, or it is a sign of other serious health problems; it simply says something wrong is happening in your body. The causes of the scalloped tongue are dehydration, stress, or sleep problems.
In this guide, we will discuss the scalloped tongue and which factors become the reason for this problem and its symptoms. Let's learn about the precautions that help you keep your tongue and body healthy.
What is a Scalloped Tongue?
A scalloped tongue is a sign of any health issues. It occurs when our body doesn't get proper minerals and vitamins. In this case, your tongue looks bumpy or wavy. It is not so harmful, but sometimes it might cause minor health problems. It's a natural occurrence. Therefore, it is not a serious problem and does not require any proper treatment.
Understanding the Appearance
It is also known as a rippled tongue. It makes your tongue look bumpy or wavy, mostly when pressed by your teeth. In some cases, your tongue might seem slightly red or swollen, especially if there's another health issue.
Common Misconceptions
Here are some common myths about this disease:
- Painful Condition: It is not a serious and painful condition. You just feel a little bit uncomfortable. But if you feel pain in your tongue, it means there is some other serious issue happening.
- Serious Health Concern: Mostly, it is due to a deficiency of minerals and vitamins; otherwise, it's just a natural condition and didn't require any treatment.
- Contagious: A scalloped tongue is not contagious. It's totally different from contagious. It isn’t caused by germs or viruses that can be passed from one person to another.
Causes of Scalloped Tongue
The accurate causes of the scalloped tongue are not well known, but the following are some factors that might cause this disease:
Dehydration
Drinking proper water is very important for your body. When you don't drink a good amount of water, it causes a deficiency of fluids, which makes your tongue dry and shrink; this might lead to a scalloped tongue.
Nutritional Deficiencies
Sometimes, your body doesn't get certain nutrients, like iron, vitamin B12, or folic acid. These nutrients are very important. They help in the proper growth and development of tissues. So, not getting these nutrients also causes a scalloped tongue.
Medical Conditions
Sometimes, it might occur due to other health issues, such as:
- Oral Thrush: A fungal infection caused by Candida albicans.
- Geographic Tongue: A condition where red patches appear on the tongue and change shape over time.
- Oral Lichen Planus: An inflammatory condition affecting the mouth and skin.
- Sjögren's Syndrome: An autoimmune disorder that affects the glands that produce moisture in the body.
Oral Habits
This disease might also occur due to your bad habits, like grinding your teeth or biting your tongue. This can put pressure on the tongue’s tissue, and through this, your tongue gets scalloped.
Symptoms of Scalloped Tongue
While this is often asymptomatic, some people may experience the following symptoms:
Pain or Discomfort
You might have to face pain or discomfort when a scalloped tongue occurs. This pain may be mild or severe, and it can be described as a burning, tingling, or sore sensation.
Difficulty Swallowing
Sometimes, your tongue increases the discomfort and becomes large or inflamed, which can cause issues in swallowing, and you can face difficulties while eating and drinking.
Other Possible Symptoms
The pain, difficulty, and swallowing are the main symptoms, but there are also some other possible symptoms. The following are these symptoms:
- Bad breath
- Changes in taste
- Dry mouth
- Sores or ulcers on the tongue
Does Scalloped Tongue Go Away?
It can get better, but it depends on why it happened.
What Affects How It Gets Better?
- Dehydration and Nutritional Problems: If it occurs due to less drinking of water or a deficiency of nutrients, then it can mostly get fixed on its own.
- Health Problems: Sometimes, it occurs due to any other health issue. In this condition, you have to use medicine to get out of this problem. For example, if you have oral thrush, you might need antifungal medicine. If you have Sjögren's syndrome, you will need treatment to help with its symptoms.
- Oral Habits: If you are suffering from this issue that occurs because of grinding your teeth or biting your tongue, then it will not get better until you leave these bad habits.
When to See a Doctor?
You should see a doctor if your tongue comes with any of these symptoms:
- Severe pain or discomfort
- Trouble swallowing
- Sores or ulcers on your tongue
- Changes in taste
- Bad breath
- Fever
Scalloped Tongue Treatment
Home Remedies
It is mostly caused by not drinking enough water or missing some important nutrients, so don't worry. This can be fixed by home treatments:
- Drink Water: You need to drink a good amount of water daily to stay hydrated.
- Eat Healthy Foods: You have to eat healthy food that gives your body vitamins and minerals, like iron, vitamin B12, and folic acid.
- Take Care of Your Teeth: Always keep your mouth clean. You can do this by using mouthwash and brushing your teeth regularly, which helps you to avoid infections.
Medical Treatments
if you face this problem due to any health issue, then your doctor might also recommend the following treatments:
- Antifungal Medicine: For a condition called oral thrush.
- Corticosteroid Medicine: For a problem known as oral lichen planus.
- Saliva-Boosting Medicine: For a condition called Sjögren's syndrome.
- Surgery: In very rare cases, surgery might be needed to fix a severe scalloped tongue.
Preventing It From Coming Back
To stop the it from happening again, remember to:
- Drink Enough Water
- Eat Healthy Foods
- Take Care of Your Teeth
- Stay Away from Irritating Foods and Drinks
- Take Care of Any Health Problems You Have
Final Verdict
Presently, a scalloped tongue is a common condition that most people suffer from. This can mostly be caused by less drinking water, deficiency of nutrients, or other health issues. This is not a serious condition and mostly occurs naturally, but in some cases, it might cause pain and difficulties. But don't worry; you can easily get relief from this problem by following the solution in this article.