Why does the bitter taste appear?
A bitter taste in the mouth appears due to the reflux of the contents of the duodenum into the stomach or esophagus and oral cavity.
This feeling is troubling not only because of gastrointestinal diseases. The reason may be the presence of an infection in the body, exposure to medications, insufficient oral hygiene, during pregnancy, due to a lack of vitamins, an excess of fried heavy foods, alcohol, and coffee drinks. Gum disease is accompanied by a feeling of taste in the mouth due to the growth of bacterial flora. With dentures and poor oral hygiene, bacteria accumulate, multiply, and a bitter taste appears in the mouth.
When taking chemotherapy drugs, antibiotics, or antihistamines, bitterness in the mouth can be a side effect.
Dysgeusia is a taste disorder in which taste perception is altered. Dysgeusia can occur during pregnancy, in smokers, in older people, and in mental illness.
Causes of bitterness in the mouth during pregnancy
Bitterness in the mouth during pregnancy is an unpleasant symptom that approximately 80% of women experience. The reasons for the appearance of bitterness at different stages of pregnancy are different.
In the first trimester, a reconfiguration of all body systems occurs. For the normal course of pregnancy, a large number of hormones are produced, the action of which is aimed at preserving the newborn life. The hormone progesterone has the most powerful effect. It relaxes the walls of the uterus and reduces its contractions, thereby promoting the growth and development of the fetus.
The hormone acts in the same way on the digestive system. It relaxes the stomach muscles, slows down the digestion of food and the movement of feces through the intestines. Undigested food easily enters the esophagus, causing bitterness. Progesterone affects taste buds. Many women note that their usual food becomes tasteless. After eating, an unpleasant taste appears in the mouth.
In late pregnancy, the appearance of bitterness is associated with an increase in the size of the fetus. The growing uterus presses on the stomach, and its contents enter the esophagus. Most often, this condition is observed in the third trimester, when the uterus reaches a large size and puts strong pressure on the walls of the stomach. After childbirth, when the uterus descends, the bitterness disappears.
How to get rid of bitterness in your mouth
Treatment depends on the diagnosis.
If these are diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (gallbladder, pancreas, liver), then the doctor prescribes drug therapy and dietary nutrition. Medicines used include choleretic drugs, antibiotics, antispasmodics for pain, prokinetics for synchronous functioning of the gallbladder and ducts, and sedatives. If bitterness in the mouth appears after eating fatty, fried, spicy foods, then it is necessary to adjust the diet and introduce healthy foods into the diet.
If you have GERD, you must follow some recommendations - do not lie down after eating for half an hour, do not bend over after eating, do not wear tight clothes that compress the stomach, sleep with the head of the bed raised.
How does bitterness in the mouth occur?
Bitterness in the mouth is formed due to a certain dysfunction. The stability of this symptom means that some problem is occurring in the body, the mechanism of which will be clarified by the attending physician.
Liver and gallbladder
The first suspicions of bitterness in the mouth fall on disorders in the functioning of the liver and gall bladder. These two organs are in close relationship with the gastrointestinal tract. The production of bile is part of the functionality of the liver, then through the bile ducts it enters the gallbladder, where it accumulates and from where, if necessary, it is transported to the duodenum. Stagnation of bile at any of these stages (if the liver is not working properly, the gallbladder is clogged with stones or sand, or the motility of the biliary tract is impaired) is fraught with the release of bile into the esophagus with any sharp contraction of the stomach or intestines. The absence of pain in the liver area, the absence of its enlargement, and a normal, non-icteric skin color does not mean that the liver is not overloaded and is coping with its functions.
With inflammation of the gallbladder, cholecystitis, bitterness in the mouth will certainly be accompanied by pain in the right hypochondrium, bilious vomiting, dry mouth, increased body temperature and even yellowness of the skin; in rare cases, diarrhea or constipation, insomnia, increased irritability develop, a yellow thick coating forms on the tongue and a metallic taste in the mouth.
Stomach and intestines
Many diseases of the gastrointestinal tract are accompanied by impaired outflow of bile. Periodically, the production, release and absorption of bile is disrupted with ulcers and gastritis, duodenitis, enteritis and colitis, pancreatitis. Fibrogastroscopy helps determine the specific disease and the direction in which treatment should be carried out.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease is manifested by the rise of the acidic contents of the stomach through the esophagus, as a result of which its upper parts are irritated and bitterness in the mouth and heartburn develop. In this case, discomfort occurs after meals - heartburn and burning in the mouth, bitterness and acidity in the mouth, belching, hiccups, nausea. The reason lies in neurological disorders, pathology of the stomach or esophagus. The problem can be eliminated by normalizing the diet and refusing to consume large and unbalanced portions of food. After a meal, you should not take a horizontal position; you should exclude fatty and spicy foods, citrus fruits and chocolate.
Gastric dyspepsia is a disorder of the stomach. Symptoms include rapid satiety and a feeling of heaviness in the stomach, stomach discomfort, and bad breath. Bitterness appears after eating, in the morning it is combined with heartburn and nausea, flatulence.
Giardiasis
Parasitic invasions in the small intestine, such as the penetration of Giardia, provoke destructive changes in it. The bottom line is that the attachment of Giardia to the intestinal mucosa provokes its irritation, the digestive process is disrupted, pain, bloating, rumbling in the abdomen occur, appetite decreases, and fatigue develops. The problem can be solved using folk remedies (tansy or wormwood decoctions) or by seeking professional help.
Oral cavity
Inflammatory processes in the oral cavity, such as degenerative gum diseases, inflammation of the periodontal tissues, disorders of the innervation of the tongue, stomatitis and gingivitis, as well as the use of poorly selected metal or plastic crowns, dentures, fillings, can provoke bitterness in the mouth . Typically, this kind of disease is accompanied by other symptoms - hyperemia, ulceration of the mucous membranes, bad breath, etc. If bitterness in the mouth is not accompanied by symptoms indicating a disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, liver or gallbladder, you need to think about the health of your oral cavity. The nature of the taste in this case is associated with the proliferation of pathogenic bacterial microflora, allergic reactions or a disorder of taste buds.
Hormonal disorders
With hyperthyroidism, when the thyroid gland secretes an increased amount of thyroid hormones. With hypothyroidism, the opposite process occurs. At the same time, there is an increased release of adrenaline and norepinephrine, and they affect spasms of the muscles of the biliary tract. This process underlies biliary dyskinesia and the appearance of bitterness in the mouth develops precisely as a result. Treatment of the consequences of a hormonal disorder will not be effective without directly addressing the cause of the disease, that is, hormonal shifts.
Another endocrine disease manifested by buckwheat in the mouth may be diabetes mellitus. A bitter taste usually accompanies an increase in blood glucose levels. At the same time, vision usually deteriorates, sweating increases, and the feet and palms “burn.” The condition requires immediate normalization.
Diet
The diet should include soft, well-chopped food. Gentle cooking methods - steam, bake, boil, stew. Include puree soups and cream soup in your diet. Bread can be consumed dried, yesterday's bread made from first and second grade flour. Meat – chicken, turkey, lean parts of beef, lean fish. Eggs should be in the form of omelettes, steamed in the oven. Food should be warm, not cold or hot. If there is a symptom of bitterness in the mouth, it is necessary to exclude sausages, smoked foods, fatty, fried, canned, and pickled foods from the diet. It is completely necessary to exclude alcohol, spicy foods, coffee, chocolate, carbonated drinks, pork, and some legumes.
Treatment of bitterness in the mouth
Bitterness in the mouth almost never occurs for no reason. Causes of bitterness in the mouth that do not require special intervention include, at best, pregnancy and smoking.
When smoking, bitterness occurs in response to prolonged exposure to cigarette smoke both on the taste buds and on the body as a whole. Typically, such a symptom in this case remains unattended, but if it still causes discomfort to the smoker, then only getting rid of the bad habit is indicated. At a minimum, it is possible to undertake therapy for the violations that have occurred (a smoker easily develops any disease from the above list), however, if the previous lifestyle is maintained, it runs the risk of reoccurring.
In pregnant women, bitterness in the mouth is often combined with belching, a metallic and sour taste, and a burning sensation in the throat. This complex of symptoms develops as part of gestosis, usually in the later stages. The sensation usually persists until childbirth and goes away after. It would be useful to consult medical specialists, but they may not reveal any special deviations. Among the reasons are hormonal changes, anatomical changes and exacerbation of chronic conditions. In addition to the fact that a woman’s condition returns to normal after childbirth, she may be indicated for symptomatic treatment, or rather, relief of an unpleasant symptom - an appropriate diet and the use of folk remedies. It is important to exclude from the diet foods that reduce the tone of the esophageal sphincter - coffee, strong tea, chocolate, spicy and fatty, fried and spicy foods, rich soups; After eating, it is right to take a short walk, and go to bed no earlier than several hours. Traditional methods include baking soda, calamus root, and potato juice; it is recommended to discuss your preferred medicinal plants with your doctor.
In other cases, treatment of bitterness in the mouth involves a high-quality and thorough diagnosis of the condition and elimination of the cause of the bitterness. By itself, this symptom does not make sense to treat, since the uncomfortable state will recur as long as a certain dysfunction is observed in the body.
Bitterness in the mouth should be treated exclusively after diagnosis, where the patient is referred by a gastroenterologist, neurologist, endocrinologist, or initially by a general practitioner. All that a doctor can recommend to normalize the condition without preliminary diagnosis is:
- dietary food - at least with the exception of hot, spicy, fatty and fried foods, alcohol, coffee, chocolate, citrus fruits;
- temporary eating pattern - frequent consumption of small portions is preferable to large meals;
- giving up bad habits - smoking and alcohol abuse;
- cleansing the intestines of toxins, for example, by taking enterosorbents;
- normalization of normal intestinal microflora;
- elimination of stress factors, positive thinking, active lifestyle.
pharmaceutical treatments for bitterness in the mouth because, as previously stated, it is merely a symptom of a wide variety of functional disorders. However, symptomatic treatment exists, and this is traditional medicine.
Symptoms
With a proper diet and a healthy lifestyle, such a nuisance should not affect a woman. Unless the reason lies in hormonal changes. In the early stages, a similar problem may bother you in different ways: a bitter taste in the mouth during pregnancy may appear and disappear, constant bitterness can be bothersome, and the intensity of the foreign taste in the mouth will vary.
The most common symptoms that accompany a bitter taste in the mouth during pregnancy are the following:
- Feeling of discomfort in the abdominal area;
- Regularly painful belching;
- Heartburn;
- Sourish taste.
Why a bitter taste appears in the mouth during pregnancy can only be revealed by an examination and a visit to a gastroenterologist.
But there is a list of causes of bitterness in the mouth during pregnancy, which you will learn about below.
Main causes of the problem
The reasons for an unpleasant taste in the mouth can be divided into two groups. The first includes internal ones, associated with various diseases of internal organs, the second - the negative influence of external factors. Why there is an unpleasant taste in the mouth:
- diseases of the digestive system - gastritis, duodenitis, ulcerative lesions of the duodenum and stomach;
- pathologies of the biliary apparatus - liver, pancreas;
- helminthiasis;
- diseases of the endocrine system - diabetes mellitus, hyperthyroidism;
- dental diseases - caries, stomatitis, periodontal disease;
- vitamin deficiency;
- inflammatory and infectious lesions of the ENT organs - sinusitis, tonsillitis, sinusitis;
- neurological disorders;
- toxicosis during pregnancy.
Among external factors, the main ones are smoking, food or alcohol intoxication, long-term use of antibiotics and other medications that cause disruption of healthy intestinal microflora.
Also, a sharp bitterness in the mouth can occur after eating with the addition of hot spices, hot chili peppers or garlic.
Bitterness in the mouth may be accompanied by additional symptoms - the appearance of a yellow (gastritis) or white coating on the mucous membrane of the tongue, nausea in the morning after sleep (liver pathologies, pancreatic diseases), bad breath (stomatitis), dry mucous membranes and increased sweating (sugar diabetes).
