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Diagnosing Health Problems From The Tongue

By Dr. Jerry Lee Hoover N.D.

Many of us take our tongue for granted, but in this article I hope to share with my readers many important aspects about ones tongue.

One of the jobs of the tongue is for you to enjoy the different tastes of the foods you eat.  We have up to eight thousand taste buds on the tongue.  But not all of them are on the tongue there are some in the back of your throat all the way down to the esophagus, you also have some in your nose and sinuses, these cells renew themselves every week.  Doctors in the past thought that the tongue had four taste zones,  one for sweet, sour, salty and bitter, but these tastes can be sensed on all parts of the tongue and are not in separate zones.

Scientists at Colombia University say the brain, not the tongue decides the taste.  Yes our taste buds detect the flavours, but they send signals to the brain which interprets the flavours.

Smoking, drinking and hot sauces affect the taste buds causing a diminishing taste of the foods one eats. Two tips on how to enjoy the taste of the food to its fullest.  When you are eating take your time and chew your food thoroughly enjoying the different tastes.  Once the food leaves your mouth the flavors are gone.  When you are drinking a juice or liquid, do not use a straw, instead drink it from the glass or cup so you can let the liquid cover all of your tongue and all the taste buds instead of only a small part of the tongue.

Have you ever wondered why the doctor wants to look at your tongue, its because your tongue can tell the doctor many things about your health. The tongue is at the very beginning of the digestive tract, which is approx. 30 feet long.  By looking at the tongue we can learn much about the rest of the digestive tract and also what is happening inside other parts of your body.  Before we start looking at different variations of the tongue to diagnose health problems,  lets look at what the tongue of a healthy person should look like.  The tongue would be pinkish in color and the color would be consistent across the entire tongue.  The tongue would not be to wet or to dry.  There would be no cracks on the tongue.  There would be a very thin white coating on the tongue.   There would be no teeth marks on the sides of the tongue.

Here are a few simple things your tongue can tell you about your health.  If your tongue has white spots that look similar to cottage cheese, this usually is a sign of a yeast infection, commonly seen in babies, elderly individuals who wear dentures, persons with a weak immune system, those who have been taking antibiotics, people with diabetes or those taking inhaled steroids for asthma or lung diseases.  If your tongue is bright red this usually is a lack of certain nutrients, especially iron, and B vitamins.  If your tongue appears black and hairy, it doesn’t actually mean your tongue is really growing hair it just looks like it because secretions have accumulated on the surface and have turned dark, black hairy tongue is not common but may occur in people who do not practice good hygiene,people with diabetes, those taking antibiotics and those receiving chemotherapy.  A purple tongue can be caused by chronic bronchitis and high cholesterol.

A tongue that is too wet, many times is due to excess acid in the stomach due to irritation and the tongue will often reflect this by becoming red and moist, stress can also be a factor.

A tongue that is too dry is sometimes called an acid tongue.  When stomach acid builds up in the stomach and begins to move upwards, it may irritate the lining of the stomach, esophagus, mouth and tongue, the result is a very red and dry tongue, also a lack of water can cause dry tongue.

Cracks on the tongue can be caused by poor digestion from intolerance to certain foods and also from stress.

A build up of a heavy white coating of the tongue is due to the accumulation of improperly digested food that is congested in the intestines.

Teeth marks on the tongue can be due to poor digestion which can cause inflammation in the digestive tract causing the tongue to enlarge,also resulting in tooth marks on the tongue.  It also can be caused by thyroid problems and water retention.

A deep crack running down the middle of the tongue could be caused by spinal stress from an injury or reflects chronic stress from the nervous system. Canker sores or ulcers on the tongue or in the mouth can be caused by certain foods, nutritional deficiencies or emotional stress.

In Conclusion

Our tongue can tell us many things about our health, revealing things that are happening inside our bodies.  If your tongue has any of the signs I mentioned above I encourage you to do something about it.

About The Author

Dr.  Jerry Lee Hoover N.D. is retired and lives in Granada Nicaragua.  Is the author of three books, NATURAL MEDICINE which has 47 chapters on just about every topic, high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes, etc. His book is also in Spanish and can be down loaded free from his web site, (www.cancernaturalcure.com), His second book Natural Ways To Prevent Cancer was published 2 years ago and can be purchased through Amazon Kindle His latest book Radiation From Cell Phones, WiFi, Others can also be purchased through Amazon Kindle

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