What Is The Coating On The Surface Of The Tongue?
The tongue’s surface sometimes becomes “furred” or coated. Actually the formation of a coating on the tongue is a natural and continuous process. However, this coating is usually removed by saliva flow, chewing of food, talking and swallowing. The coating is generally composed of small food particles, bacteria and tissue cells that are sloughed off the surface of the tongue in a way similar to that in which your skin sheds dead cells. The amount of coating that develops, of course, varies with each individual and also at different times of the day. Any condition that interferes with the normal cleaning of the tongue may produce an abnormally coated tongue. Among the factors that can contribute to this are soft diet, mouth breathing for some, lack of attention to mouth hygiene, smoking, dehydration during fevers, and lack of normal saliva flow. Generally speaking, a furred or coated tongue indicates a somewhat lowered condition of health. When a person has a digestive upset, the sheddin
