The Science Behind ‘Cotton Mouth’

Hey,

I don't smoke regularly, but when I do, I always get really dry mouth.
My issue is, that I suffer from a really dry mouth (xerostomia) and a coated tongue. However, after I smoke it gets even worse (to the point where my tongue feels kind of numb and I can't speak properly). So I tried to look up why this happens and came across this older article (2013).

Because of my xerostomia, the last few lines very particularly interesting for me.

I am pretty sure the cotton mouth from smoking is very individual, but at least a few people here must have got experience with it I guess.

Did you notice any long-term saliva production changes when smoking regularly?
Anybody heard by any chance of using marijuana to treat insufficient saliva production, as mentioned in the article?

From what I have observed the famous chronic smokers at least - Tommy Chong, all the rapers etc. have a really good saliva production - I know this is weird as hell, but when your mouth is constantly dry for 5+ years, you start noticing weird shit. So my assumption was, that weed helps with this somehow. And now I find out it makes things even worse

Thanks for any input guys.

I typically don't get severe cotton mouth but I have wondered about general dehydration when smoking weed. Sometimes, I'll chug a glass or 2 of water before I get stoned. I try to remember to stay hydrated but if I get to working on art or playing guitar, I may be too distracted to remember to drink water. It may be psychological but I feel like conscientiously trying to stay hydrated helps. You should talk to a holistic doctor about your situation, though. My mother-in-law goes to a holistic doctor in LA and she's worked wonders for her. You might be able to drink water with those electrolytes packets mixed in if you're having any issues staying hydrated. Then again, you might be dealing with something completely different if its just your salivary glands.

thanks. Ye, good point.
About my mouth - I've already gone through countless doctors, TCM practitioners etc. but with no avail.

Sorry to hear about your trials...wishing you good luck. If you find out anything, you should post it here in case anyone else winds up going through the same thing. I'm sure you'll find a way to overcome it!

there are medicines for dry mouth. have you tried a rx?

weed does dehydrate your body. there are some compounds that increase production but most strains cause dry mouth. its not long lasting and you do get a tolerance to this. as such chronic weed smokers are not at risk for dental probs etc.

i see no article.

BuddyGetHigh2 said:

Sorry to hear about your trials...wishing you good luck. If you find out anything, you should post it here in case anyone else winds up going through the same thing. I'm sure you'll find a way to overcome it!

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Appreciate it

qwizoking said:

there are medicines for dry mouth. have you tried a rx?

weed does dehydrate your body. there are some compounds that increase production but most strains cause dry mouth. its not long lasting and you do get a tolerance to this. as such chronic weed smokers are not at risk for dental probs etc.

i see no article.

Click to expand...

here it is again: http://www.truthonpot.com/2013/08/04/the-science-behind-cotton-mouth/

Ok, so you do build a tolerance to it? I mean, the more (the longer) you smoke, the less of a dehydrating / drying out effect it has on you?

There's this medicine called Pilocarpine that's apparently used by patients with dry mouth after chemo. I couldn't get a prescription for it, but I might be able to try it in a few months when I'll be studying abroad.

yiu will not gain a tolerance to the dehydrating properties of weed. different stuffs

Pinene. This terpene is responsible for the typical smell associated with pine trees and their resins. It is also the main component of turpentine and is present in the essential oils of other plants such as rosemary, sage and eucalyptus. Pinene is used as an expectorant and antiseptic it allows air to reach the lungs more easily. I found this on the web.

Hopefully, legalization efforts will persuade the feds to lift restrictions on research. I've read articles indicating that cotton mouth can be studied to help people suffering from afflictions resulting in too much saliva replication as well as too little.

Im my experience Amanita Muscaria seems to stimulate saliva production.

lots of things do

Hi, Randall88 ! Any news about Pilocarpine ? have you tried it ? can it have serious side effects ?
Im Really interested

m41rc0 said:

Hi, Randall88 ! Any news about Pilocarpine ? have you tried it ? can it have serious side effects ?
Im Really interested

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Hey! What a coincidence.. just today I have finally managed to get the doc to prescribe me the medication.. I am also really curious (and hopeful).
Will definitely keep it updated here

Great! You are the man

m41rc0 said:

Great! You are the man

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ok, so today I took my 1st dose.. 10 minutes afterwards I started salivating like crazy, sweating and also produce gastric juices a lot more (I can feel my stomach burning). I kind of freaked out, because I don't think such an immediate reaction is normal.. I also feel dizzy.

On one side, I am really happy because I have saliva again, after 6 years... on the other side, if it's going to be like this all the time, I won't be able to take it for sure :/

Do you also have similar problems, or were you interested just out of curiosity ?

you could always lower your dose.

it will stimulate exocrine glands. The sweat, salivary, lacrimal, gastric, pancreatic, intestinal glands and the mucous cells of the respiratory tract.


most usually feel it after about 20 minutes and its peaking roughly an hour and a half in. the side effects you described are normal.
i assume your taking 2.5mg a couple times a day. if higher, try that..


as i said..but worded bad.
while typically smoking cannabis will dry your mouth. as you mentioned, chronic smokers dont have increased cavities and other issues, infact it does increase production. certain strains and smoking resin will give the most notable effects even causing a humorous drooling if using a bong. the compounds causing this have a rather long half life in the body and are less sensitive than thc. this isnt the main focus when discussing thc dehydrating you however

qwizoking said:

you could always lower your dose.

it will stimulate exocrine glands. The sweat, salivary, lacrimal, gastric, pancreatic, intestinal glands and the mucous cells of the respiratory tract.


most usually feel it after about 20 minutes and its peaking roughly an hour and a half in. the side effects you described are normal.
i assume your taking 2.5mg a couple times a day. if higher, try that..


as i said..but worded bad.
while typically smoking cannabis will dry your mouth. as you mentioned, chronic smokers dont have increased cavities and other issues, infact it does increase production. certain strains and smoking resin will give the most notable effects even causing a humorous drooling if using a bong. the compounds causing this have a rather long half life in the body and are less sensitive than thc. this isnt the main focus when discussing thc dehydrating you however

Click to expand...

wow, thanks for the info man! I would never imagine getting medical info on a stoner forum This in fact only prooves, that 95% people smoking weed are knowledgeable people with great character..

Ok, so you are saying that chronic marijuana smoking does indeed increase saliva production (at least to some extent and for some individuals) .

Have you used Salagen (Pilocarpine) as well? Right now, I am taking a single 5mg dose in the evening.. so maybe I should split the tablet in 1/2 and take more often ? I thought it would have more of a slow, consistent effect.. but if it only help for 1-2hrs after I take it, I'd have to keep using it forever.. or does it actually cure the symptoms, at least partially ?
I know this probably sounds strange, but I don't really care about the side effects so much, as the feeling of having saliva is so great..
Also the fact that I have oral hyperkeratosis (I know, wtf - basically, 'furry tongue') doesn't help too much with my condition...

And about the strains.. I hope one day I'll be in that stage, where I can pick the strains I buy ... I wish I'd love in Netherlands.

Hi qwizoking could you suggest some of the names of the strains that cause drooling ?

For Randall88 :
You could search (googling of course) into the threatments used for Sjogerns Syndrome and athrophic rhinitis.
One other suggestion :
when the PNS is more active (Parasimphathetic Nervous System) the activity of all glands ( salivary glands, mucous glands etc ...) is increased.

Currently ( for about 3 days) I'm mixing weed with Acorus Calamus root powder. Calamus root works thanks to beta-asarone. Found here
http://www.cannabis-med.org/data/pdf/en_2008_04_2.pdf. You can smoke it or chew it... For now I have noted how it helps to relax and produce some mucous.

Oh, nice.. I'll look into that as well. Thanks.
btw for my Salagen experience.. it was only the 1st tablet that had crazy effects. By the 2nd one, it wasn't that drastic at all..

OP have you tried oil pulling as a way to stimulate saliva production?