Hairy Tongue
The common term for the circumstance of overgrown filiform papillae on the tongue, a condition known clinically as lingua villosa. Filiform papillae are long, resemble hairs, and do not contain taste buds. Their purpose is to help move food during chewing and swallowing. Normally the wear and tear of this function breaks them off, a process called desquamation. Various circumstances inhibit desquamation, allowing the filiform papillae to grow up to 10 times longer than normal. The overgrown filiform papillae then trap food debris and other substances that impart color (such as coffee and tea), giving the characteristic “colored hair” appearance of hairy tongue. The causes of hairy tongue are numerous and include eating habits centered around soft foods, which do not scrape the tongue, and inadequate ORAL HYGIENE.
From a medical perspective hairy tongue is harmless, though people in whom it develops tend to find it aesthetically displeasing and in some it tickles or irritates the soft palate during swallowing. Brushing the tongue as a routine aspect of oral hygiene, or using a tongue scraper, nearly always restores the desquamation process and reduces the length of the filiform papillae. Hairy tongue is also slang for a bad hangover, probably stemming from the correlation between chronic ALCOHOL abuse and poor oral hygiene habits.
From a medical perspective hairy tongue is harmless, though people in whom it develops tend to find it aesthetically displeasing and in some it tickles or irritates the soft palate during swallowing. Brushing the tongue as a routine aspect of oral hygiene, or using a tongue scraper, nearly always restores the desquamation process and reduces the length of the filiform papillae. Hairy tongue is also slang for a bad hangover, probably stemming from the correlation between chronic ALCOHOL abuse and poor oral hygiene habits.
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