Excessive drooling, or hypersalivation, can be very annoying. In a serious context, this can affect your quality of life. To treat mild symptoms, avoid foods and smells that stimulate saliva. Grape juice, tea, sage, and ginger can make your mouth feel drier, reducing saliva production. For serious symptoms of hypersalivation, such as an oral infection or motor nerve disorder, contact your healthcare provider.
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Method 1 of 3: Trying Homemade Remedies
Step 1. Avoid food and saliva-stimulating odors
Limit the consumption of sour fruits, sweet foods, and acidic foods that can make your saliva increase. Try to stay away from all kinds of food and smells, such as the smell of cooking or perfume, that can cause you to drool.
- Eating something can stimulate salivation, but dry, unflavored foods such as crackers or toast can help absorb saliva and provide instant relief.
- If someone around you is cooking or eating, and you can't avoid it, try distracting yourself. Keep yourself busy doing something, like singing to your heart, writing a story in a book, or exchanging messages on a phone app.
Step 2. Drink plenty of water, especially if your saliva is thick
This may sound strange, but staying hydrated can help prevent drooling. Drink 3.8 liters of water every day.
If your saliva is thick and phlegm, drinking more water can dilute it and make it easier for you to swallow. Avoid dairy products if your saliva is thick
Step 3. Chew gum or suck on hard-textured candies
This method can prevent you from drooling, especially if you have trouble controlling it. By keeping your mouth busy doing something, you will not drool easily. Always carry gum or candy in your pocket just in case.
If you're worried about your sugar levels, look for sugar-free gum or candy
Step 4. Drink a glass of grape juice
When you're drooling excessively, pour yourself a glass of grape juice. The content of tannic acid in grape juice can make the mouth feel dry while reducing the production of saliva in the body.
- Other drinks that contain tannins are green and black tea, coffee, and red wine.
- Keep in mind that these drinks can cause tooth decay and staining. Floss at least once a day and brush your teeth at least twice a day. As a bonus, brushing your teeth can remove excess saliva for a while.
Step 5. Use sage or ginger to dry your mouth
A cup of sage or ginger tea can help reduce excess saliva production. Chewing sage leaves or a piece of ginger root can also produce the same effect. It's best to drink the sage concoction once a day; Mix 15-20 drops of sage extract in a glass of water.
- You can find sage tea in many grocery stores, health product centers, and online stores. Alternatively, boil a tablespoon (14.8 ml) of fresh sage leaves or a teaspoon of dried sage with 240 ml of hot water for 3-5 minutes.
- Some medical experts recommend sage and ginger to reduce saliva production in patients with serious conditions, such as people with Parkinson's disease and ALS. However, you should consult your doctor before taking herbal remedies or supplements if you have a medical condition or are taking certain medications.
- Do not take sage extracts or herbs if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
- Consuming more than 15 grams of sage leaves or 0.5 grams of sage oil extract per kilogram of body weight can cause hypersalivation, as well as various other side effects.
Method 2 of 3: Avoiding the Cause
Step 1. Avoid situations that can cause nausea and vomiting
Excessive salivation is often associated with nausea and vomiting. If you're drooling with nausea, sit down and try to relax until you don't feel sick anymore. Take note of the triggers, and try to avoid them.
- Strong odors, driving, amusement park rides, bright or flashing lights, and high temperatures are common causes of nausea.
- Bland foods, such as toast, crackers, or broth, can help relieve stomach discomfort.
Step 2. Take antacid medication if you have acid reflux
Excessive salivation can also be associated with acid reflux disease, or caused by stomach acid rising up into the throat. If you experience it, avoid consuming spicy and sour foods, then take over-the-counter antacids.
Antacids can affect the way your body absorbs other drugs. So, check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking other medicines
Step 3. Ask your doctor if the medication you are taking can increase saliva production
Anticonvulsants, sedatives, antipsychotics, and direct and indirect cholinergic agonists can cause excess saliva production. If you take certain medications on a regular basis, look online for information or consult your doctor to inquire about potential side effects.
- Some examples of drugs that can cause hypersalivation are clozapine, potassium chlorate, risperidone, and pilocarpine.
- The doctor who gave the drug may be able to recommend an alternative treatment with less effect. If not, he or she may prescribe another medication to reduce saliva production.
Step 4. Exercise to improve your swallowing ability
For children and adults who have no difficulty swallowing, exercising the muscles used for swallowing can prevent saliva from building up. The technique includes the practice of sucking liquid through a straw and sucking air inside the straw to lift the green beans or raisins.
- If your child is drooling excessively, doing these exercises will teach him how to control the muscles used for swallowing. If necessary, a speech therapist can help control the muscles in the mouth and throat.
- Seeing a therapist may be necessary for patients with motor nerve disease, muscle disease, serious nerve damage, Parkinson's disease, and various other disorders that cause difficulty swallowing.
Method 3 of 3: Seeking Medical Help
Step 1. Consult a doctor for oral medication, if necessary
A variety of oral diseases can cause excessive drooling, from toothaches to tonsil infections. Call your doctor or dentist if you can't deal with excess saliva production on your own, or if you have signs of infection, such as pain, swelling, or discharge.
Oral health problems other than infection, such as structural defects, can also cause saliva buildup. Support necklaces, braces, and other equipment can be used if your mouth, neck, or jawbone is making it difficult for you to swallow
Step 2. Have your doctor prescribe a medication that can regulate saliva production
Anticholinergic drugs can block nerve signals that regulate saliva production. This drug is available in 0.5 gram tablets or in the form of a patch that is placed behind the ear. The usual dosage is 1-3 tablets or 1 patch per day.
- Side effects can include constipation, dry mouth, reduced urine output, irritation, dizziness, drowsiness, confusion, vomiting, headache, and blurred vision. The medicine in the form of a patch can cause irritation or itching in the area where it is applied. Make sure you have discussed all the risks and benefits with your doctor before starting any particular medication.
- A scopolamine patch can also help reduce saliva production, but the side effects are similar to those of anticholinergic drugs.
Step 3. Ask for eye drops containing 1% atropine
This medication can be taken orally (under the tongue) to help dry out the saliva in the mouth. Atropine is an anticholinergic drug, but because the dose is low, side effects are not severe.
Similar drugs are oral hyoscyamine, oral amitriptyline, and sublingual ipratropium bromide
Step 4. Consider botox injection options with your doctor to treat serious excess saliva production
If other treatment options don't work, your doctor may suggest you get Botox injections. Using ultrasound technology as a guide, a medical professional will inject the salivary glands with a poison that temporarily blocks its functions.
- Botox injections should be done every 5-6 months to treat excess saliva.
- Make sure you come to an experienced ENT doctor to do this treatment.
Step 5. Consider surgery as the last step
Surgical removal of the salivary glands is extremely rare, and should only be performed if excess saliva production significantly affects quality of life. For example, choking on saliva can be life threatening for people with motor neuron disorders, so surgery is the only way out.
- There are a variety of surgery options that can be tried. Your regular doctor or medical team can provide the most suitable option.
- Usually, salivary gland surgery can be done easily and quickly. Some types of surgery require only local anesthesia. This means that the anesthetic is only given in the area of the operation so you will be awake during the procedure.
