To send a link and summary of this article to a friend, click here . If your mouth is chronically dry and you've seen your doctor, she has probably probed possible causes, including medication or disease. It tends to hit women after menopause. Women with diabetes are at increased risk for dry mouth, says Heidi K. Hausauer, D.D.S., instructor of operative dentistry at the University of the Pacific Dental School in San Francisco and a spokesperson for the Academy of General Dentistry, as are women who have have had radiation for head and neck cancer, which can damage the salivary glands. And some women find that their mouths simply get drier as they get older, for no medical reason, Geraldine Morrow, D.M.D., past president of the American Dental Association, a member of the American Association of Women Dentists and a dentist in Anchorage, Alaska.
Acid causes tooth decay, but in a normal mouth, saliva buffers that acid.
Here's what you can do. A Doctor Saliva helps your teeth resist decay and gum disease. So if your mouth becomes uncomfortably dry for more than a few days, or if it recurs often, you should make an appointment to see your doctor or dentist, says Geraldine Morrow, D.M.D., past president of the American Dental Association, a member of the American Association of Women Dentists and a dentist in Anchorage, Alaska. The cause might be medication you're taking. Dry mouth is a possible common side effect for more than 400 drugs, from antihistamines to high blood pressure medications, among others.