Orange tongue - Ear, Nose & Throat

pragmatic

Jan 07, 2012

To: raceegr

Dear raceegr,

I 100% agree. I've had OT for 1 year and I contracted it 2 days after a teeth cleaning. You mention a regiment of antibiotics for an extended period of time - could you provide more details?

raceegr

Jan 08, 2012

To: pragmatic

Pragmatic,
From my research it seems the bacteria that causes this orange tongue naturally exists in our mouth. It is called Actinomyces. Having dental work done seems to cause some kind of localized tissue damage which predisposes us to this bacteria. The bacteria requires antibiotic treatment for several months because it grows slowly. Most antibiotics work by inhibiting some component of cell growth. Cells that are not growing cannot be destroyed by the antibiotic. Therefore, you must take the antibiotic for an extended period of time to ensure all the bacteria has been exposed to the antibiotic. I hope that makes sense. I would recommend you see an oral surgeon an explain the situation to them. They might want to take a tissue sample and have it biopsied. I do not think any over the counter treatment mentioned here will permanently get rid of it.

andykman

Jan 12, 2012

To: all

I'm very encouraged to see what raceegr has discovered concerning the OT. I've suffered this for over a year now and tried just about all the OTC remedies mentioned here, from yeast killing probiotics to chlorhexidine mouthrinse. I even tried Milkthistle which cleanses the Liver but as we know these have no effect.

I'm also very puzzled why the medical community cannot diagnose this. I think it comes down to something that most practitioners don't see on a regular basis. I even tried my ENT and Dermatologist and they had no clue. My Dentist has no idea either but I am scheduled for a visit in 4 weeks and will come bearing lots of information about Actinomyces. I developed Periodontial Disease 14 years ago and go 4 times a year for cleanings so I'm sure that kicked it off.

enstarza

Jan 19, 2012

To: orange tongue

my son, age three, has had an orange tongue for three days. it seems to vary in intensity. last week, he had diarrhea after we both ate an off meal in mexico. his diarrhea lasted 5 days. during this time, we gave him probiotics and grapefruit seed extract. in my research thus far, what is ringing a bell is the idea of acidity or ph. certain bacteria can only exist within a certain ph range, which explains why some folks who hsve poor pral hygiene, and eat lots of sugar do not get cavities. the ph of their mouth, naturally, which is to say their stomach, gut, body is more alkaline, not acidic. an alkaline ph does not support the carie causing bacteria... all this to say, for many, i believe it is an issue of one's ph being too acidic. my son was eating many starches (acidic) and was generally off balance in his gut. i have always felt him, like me, to on the acid spectrum of natural ph level.

we are going with baking soda. making an alkaline water with it, tho thus far simply dipping his little finger in and eating it, rubbing on tongue, too.

i appreciated the site:
http://www.tonguecolor.com/Ph.html

as we see their may be many elements at play here, yet the basicness of a ph balanced body, or even an alkaline leaning ph, is important for everyone.

sugar, flour, meat, cheese...all acidic foods on the spectrum.
it is difficult to make big changes in diet and stick to them...
the idea of adding alkaline water, or even baking soda, is simple.

i am no expert, still discovering much, but i felt to emphasize the ph component.

stress=acid

antibiotics in general also probably throw off one's ph, but i honestly do not know. they do indeed wreak havoc on the beneficial microbes and healthy flora. i am very happy to say, my son has never received antibiotic medication.

i hope my young son does not have an orange tongue for years.
i will keep you posted.

cheers.

csaggie2000

Jan 19, 2012

To: Whom it may Concern

I've had the same OT issue, lots of antibiotics and acid reflux...

Reducing the amount of Tea in my diet has helped, however, never went completely away.

However, eating some homeade venison jerky makes it go away for 10-12 hours, so I ate it for a few days straight, several times a day and it has gone away for a few days now.

I'm not sure if it's the salt content or the garlic (natural antibiotic?) but seems to be working... will repost later.

randomositty

Jan 27, 2012

Guys.. I'm not trying to advertise or anything, but I been using OraMD for a good year or so, That stuff is amazing.. regular toothpaste is pretty evil, -almost any brand ..specially if it includes Fluoride-.. Any who, I just hope you guys do research on OraMD and try it out.. I really hope it helps =), -personally I think its a tad too expensive, So I just make it buying the 3 ingredients it has from amazon and combining them(more expensive but I get more in the end)..same thing..even better-, =D.. It really helps tons of mouth problems...

andykman

Feb 09, 2012

To: raceegr

I've been suffering from this malady for over a year and was encouraged to see that an Oral Surgeon may have diagnosed it. I was wondering if the diagnosis was correct and if you've started the antibiotics yet and if so, which one? I scheduled an appointment with an Oral Surgeon today and can't wait to have him check this out. Good Luck!
Andykman

raceegr

Feb 12, 2012

To: andykman

Hi andykman,
So far it looks like the diagnosis was correct. I was put on 1000 mg of Penicillin VK 4 times a day for 6 months. The orange was completely gone in about 2 weeks. He told me I need to stay on it for 6 months though as it is a very slowly reproducing strain of bacteria. I have been on the antibiotics about 2 months this far and not only is the orange tongue gone, the metallic taste I was getting is gone as well. I would recommend telling the oral surgeon your seeing to explicitly check the tissue sample for actinomyces. Good luck, and make sure you let us know what you find out.

sakcat

Mar 02, 2012

To: All

It's caused by mold in your home or office/school. I have been suffering for years and just made the connection in the past month. Prescription anti fungal don't work very well and nothing will completely cure it if you don't (carefully!) remove the mold from your environment. I recommend using grapefruit seed extract both in orally (mixed in juice or taking capsules) and a throat gargle. That stuff is truly magic... :)

Wildcat66

Mar 03, 2012

To: Orangies

I went to my dentist last Tuesday for a 6-month checkup and both she and my dental hygienist immediately recognized my orange tongue growth as Actinomycetes.  They sent me to an oral surgeon who said it looked like Actinomycetes but did not think biopsies were any good for identification(not true if you look at earlier posts on here).  He gave me an oral mouthwash to try.  If that did not work he would put me on penicillin which would be for several months.

Well, I went to my GI doctor too later on Tuesday afternoon and asked him about my unusual nausea, inflammation and constipation being caused by Actinomycetes and he said yes, it could be what is causing the problem. It can cause an infection/inflammation of the GI tract walls.  All my tests with him two weeks ago were normal and he was not sure what was causing the problems.  How do you like that!!

I was treated for 9 months last year for Babesia with Mepron and Zithromax and came down with an UTI also.  My urologist put me on Doxycycline on this past Tue and the orange tongue is disappearing quickly.  Evidently, my antibiotics from last year threw things out of whack and the UTI bacteria is being cultured again (after being told last fall it was streptococcus and treated with nitrofurantoin which did not work).  From research, actinomycetes evidently is an opportunistic bacteria which took advantage of the Babesia treatment situation.

While on Doxycycline, I'm hitting the Kefir which is better than yogurt for active cultures(found mine in the refrigerated health section of my grocer).  Stay away from sugar or else yeast will take advantage next.  But, as several people on the community stated earlier it is a new form of fibrous bacterium(why it looks like a fungus) called Actinomycetes.

beaverhat

Mar 04, 2012

To: criscotwister

Did you try the second dose and if so how did it turn out?
***@****

LD1964

Mar 05, 2012

To: all

In January 2012 I noticed this orange tongue problem. The only things I did differently prior to this were: 1. Healthier diet 2. Increase in vitamins 3. mouth injury from my dentist. Like many of you, I took two 10-day courses of anti-fungal swish and swallow, but it didn't appear to do anything. After some searching, in February I came across the Mayo Clinic site and found something called "yellow tongue" -- the pictures looked just like my "orange tongue", which appears to be bacteria related and goes away on its own (a precursor to black hairy tongue - GROSS), but according to my doctor, it could have been both bacteria and fungal in nature. Regardless, for 10 days I sprayed one spray of Colloidal Silver throat spray on my tongue (health food stores carry it and Dr. Oz recommended it for bacteria) and that took care of it! Just wanted to offer some hope!

Orangedragon

Mar 05, 2012

To: raceegr

I have recently aquired the lovely "orange tongue". I got it after a round of antibiotics and when my dentist performed a root canal.
I THINK YOU HAVE FOUND THE ANSWER OF WHAT WE ALL HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR. IT ALSO MAKE SENSE AS TO WHY SOME TREATMENTS WORKED FOR A SHORT WHILE AND WHY IT COMES IN CYCLES. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
I am so so glad you posted this. My son presented with an orange tongue first. a sore throat and felt somewhat sick for a few days. We took him into the doctor and he said not to worry about it. My son(15) has not been feeling well overall and has had significant post nasel drip. His tongue goes in cycles where it is really orange and then it kinda diappears.
I also had the same symptoms. I want to get treatment, but I currently do not hold insurance as I am a student. My children have insurance and I will seek treatment for my son.
My one question is....is there any harm if it is not treated?

Wildcat66

Mar 11, 2012

To: Orangies

Update: I am still taking the Doxycycline but have started feeling horrible. The orange part of my infection is gone and there is just a little of the yellow left. But, I think what my GI doctor saying the actinomyces could be causing my problems with my GI tract are true. I started having a herxheimer reaction from die-off. I was CONSTANTLY nauseated all day for 2 days. No, not from the doxy. I've had that before, usually within an hour of taking it with food. This happened all day for 2 days. My bowels felt like they were on fire and it has very slowly gone away. I was also hurting all over like someone had beat me up.
I wonder if my sensitivity to food will go away, and my severe sinus drainage....

Wildcat66

Mar 11, 2012

To: Orangies

Another symptom: today I feel very woozy and off-balance. Another sign of a herx and toxicity

terre51

Mar 16, 2012

To: All

I just wanted to let everyone know that I was watching a Dr. Oz show on March 5th and he began talking about "orange tongue". My granddaughter has an orange tongue so I sat up and took notice. This is what he said

"Dr. Oz White, Yellow, Orange Coating On Your Tongue Acid Reflux

Your Tongue: Dr. Oz says a white, yellow or orange coating on your tongue could mean you have acid reflux. It will start of as a thin yellow stripe down the centre of your tongue. When sleeping the acid will come up the esophagus and and lay on the back of your tongue. The majority of people who have acid reflux don’t even know they have it. So check your tongue for a white, yellow or orange coating." My family has a history of acid reflux so we are watching my granddaughter carefully to see if she is experiencing any acid reflux. I hope this helps anyone here. If you want to check it out for yourself you can go to: http://healthybodydaily.com/dr-oz-health-conditions/dr-oz-4-tests-for-health-check-tongue-nails-eyelids-elbows-and-knees.

terre51

Mar 16, 2012

To: All

I just wanted to let everyone know that I was watching a Dr. Oz show on March 5th and he began talking about "orange tongue". My granddaughter has an orange tongue so I sat up and took notice. This is what he said

"Dr. Oz White, Yellow, Orange Coating On Your Tongue Acid Reflux

Your Tongue: Dr. Oz says a white, yellow or orange coating on your tongue could mean you have acid reflux. It will start of as a thin yellow stripe down the centre of your tongue. When sleeping the acid will come up the esophagus and and lay on the back of your tongue. The majority of people who have acid reflux don’t even know they have it. So check your tongue for a white, yellow or orange coating." My family has a history of acid reflux so we are watching my granddaughter carefully to see if she is experiencing any acid reflux. I hope this helps anyone here. If you want to check it out for yourself you can go to: http://healthybodydaily.com/dr-oz-health-conditions/dr-oz-4-tests-for-health-check-tongue-nails-eyelids-elbows-and-knees.

pragmatic

Mar 21, 2012

To: raceegr

Dear raceegr,

I went to a doctor and like (andykman), I was armed with loads of information concerning Actinomyces and in fact I printed 50 pages from this blog.  The doctor said that she didn't want to prescribe long-term antibiotics, because they kill the "good" bacteria as well and this could lead to infections in the digestive track.

So, she sent me to an ENT.  Again, I presented my documentation.  The ENT was not interested in my opinion - he chuckled at my stack of paperwork.   He thought that although extremely rare, I may have an autoimmune disease and he sent me to the lab to have blood work done.   That was 10 days ago and I have not heard anything - based on experience it is likely that I will not hear anything.

In the meantime, my tongue is as orange/yellow as ever.  Another symptom that I have that does not seem to be common is spitting.  After about 4PM, I have to spit every 5 minutes, and especially after I eat.

No, I have not tried colloidal silver or any other snake oils.  :)

any thoughts?

Shababy49

Mar 21, 2012

I have a bunch of autoimmune diseases ie. Sjogren's, spondyloarthropathy, fibromyalgia, ulcerative colitis , and a mixed connection tissue disorder (unspecified) or lupus and RA crossovers (depending on which rheumatologist ya ask). All my docs keep saying that it is from one of them....they just don't know which and none of the specialists are any help. I have even been told to live with it. :(I'm going on a year now. I am going to try the silver I think.

andykman

Mar 31, 2012

Wanted to post an update to the ongoing OT/Actinomyces issue.  I visited an Oral Surgeon on March 16 who I was hoping would have some idea of how to treat this.  To my surprise (not really), he referred me to an Oral Medicine Dentist at a local University Hospital.  I have an appointment on April 24th.

I remain truly amazed and increasingly jaded about our Medical Community.  If they haven't seen something before and your symptoms are not something they normally deal with, they just pat us on the head like a good little child and send us on our way.

I've now been dealing with this infection for over a year and a half and cannot help but wonder what it is doing to other areas of my body.  I've had symptoms of IBS since December and cannot help but wonder if its Actinomyces related even though I''ve been taking a Probiotic daily.  I spent time and money for lab tests in February ordered by my GI doc and all tests were "normal".....sound familiar??

I'll keep you all posted...

Andykman

TAF2000

Apr 06, 2012

To: everyone

Yep.  Orange tongue.  Got it from husband who brought home a severe cold / possible strep.  (Still have cough and orange tongue months later.)

Husband's orange tongue went away after several weeks and has not come back even though we have been sharing food & drinks.

Tried antibiotics...  no luck.

Paid a ton of money for many tests, blood work, and even cut out section of tongue to biopsy.

Tests and blood work all came back normal... biopsy came back with references to "hyperkeratosis".  Something that is common with hairy tongue, and has no information about any possible reason for it to be orange.

In other words... they know NOTHING about it, and don't seem to want to bother figuring it out.

I am relatively pissed at spending so much money to get no answer at all.

The one thing that was very clear from the biopsy though was that they found no unusual bacteria, and that is why antibiotics don't have any affect, and they found no fungal, so anti-fungals don't help either.

I may try to get my doctor to find out more later, but his best guess was that the weakened immune system from the flu/strep, caused some overage (or lack) of a certain vitamin or something to show up orange on the tongue.  Both hubby and I had been taking a new B supliment for a few months before, so I have stopped all vitamins and will wait a while and see if it goes away.

If this is the case, the outbreak of orange tongues around the US does seem to coincide pretty handilly with the flood of B vitamen energy drinks on the market for the last few years.

Still not convinced this is the answer, but just sick to death of no answer at all, so....

TAF2000

Apr 06, 2012

To: Everyone

Here is a nicely infuriating descrption of Hairy Tongue:
http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/hairy+tongue

hairy tongue,
a dark, pigmented overgrowth of the filiform papillae of the tongue that has a thickened, furry appearance. It is a benign and frequent side effect of use of some antibiotics. The condition gradually subsides, and no treatment is indicated.

guest866

Apr 14, 2012

I've recently been suffering from an orange tongue too! I was on the Prevpac for a few weeks and then was prescribed Doxycycline for my acne shortly afterwards. After starting Doxycycline I started to notice my tongue was orange usually by the end of the day. Any solutions or suggestions? I thought these two antibiotics were prescribed to cure OT not cause it

guest866

Apr 14, 2012

I've recently been suffering from an orange tongue too! I was on the Prevpac for a few weeks and then was prescribed Doxycycline for my acne shortly afterwards. After starting Doxycycline I started to notice my tongue was orange usually by the end of the day. Any solutions or suggestions? I thought these two antibiotics were prescribed to cure OT not cause it

guest866

Apr 14, 2012

I've recently been suffering from an orange tongue too! I was on the Prevpac for a few weeks and then was prescribed Doxycycline for my acne shortly afterwards. After starting Doxycycline I started to notice my tongue was orange usually by the end of the day. Any solutions or suggestions? I thought these two antibiotics were prescribed to cure OT not cause it

IgGQueen

Apr 16, 2012

I'm not sure this post will work but I will try. I have had an orange tongue for a couple months now. I believe it came after I started on Spiriva although I do not believe that to be the cause. Med history: I take Cipralex, Advair, Spiriva and Ventolin. I have an IgG defiency and have transfusions for that monthly, I do have parasites but live with them as the only meds avail in Canada (so I have been told) do not work for me. I have also been diagnosed with Geographical Tongue. I do not eat much sugar but have an addiction to Diet Pepsi. I am super anal when it comes to brushing my teeth and tongue and always have been. I do not have mouth problems at all. (other than the obvious here). I havent changed my toothpaste for the last 10 plus years. My bowels are all over the map. Never constipated, usually very loose. Gassy and odorous. I blame that on the pop and parisites. I have had oral thrush many times due to the steroid inhalers I am on. I have read many but not all the posts. My question is, can you brush it off and then it comes back? I can brush the orange off my tongue and then it returns. I have a swollen and sore tongue now because of my constant brushing. It has now begun to peel. This has got to stop. I will go back and read about the Silver but if someone can help me out that would be great. Thanks for reading.

PlantGrower

Apr 17, 2012

To: everyone

Had my OT for 8 months and battled with everthing I could get a hold of and nothing worked.   See several doctors, put on many different meds, the only thing that worked was Amoxicillin, OT was gone in 4-5 days and stayed gone for about 10 days after medication was done then came back.
After paying closer attention how I felt it was discovered I had Acid Reflex, so treated that for 3 months then went back on the Amoxicillin, OT has been gone for 4 months now.  OT for me was a symptom of my acid reflex but had to get that under control first.
Hope this is helpful.

andykman

Apr 26, 2012

Wanted to let everyone know the results of my visit to an Oral Medicine Specialist on April 24.  The ICD 9 code is 529.3, Hypertrophy of tongue papillae....lists in the same family as Hairy Tongue.   They also ran a culture looking for a Candida Yeast Infection which the Doctor was pretty sure would be negative.  He did not feel this was contagious either which makes me wonder because lots of us feel it has been passed to family members.  So, if its not a bacterial or yeast related infection, what caused it??

He stated Hairy Tongue is basically an inherited trait (although I don't know any family members who have this (not something that would come up in conversation at a family gathering I'm sure).  They are not sure what would kick it off, but stress could very well have kicked my body in an overdrive to cope and it may have caused the papillae to grow out of control.

That said, there is no real cure for Hairy Tongue.  What the Doctor did prescribe is a rinse called Dakin's Solution.  Its a bleaching agent and I need to brush my tongue with 2x/day.  It actually seems to help with the discoloration a bit but I'd like to see how it works after more than 1 day.  The bottle lists it as an anti-microbial.

So, after 18months of dealing with a rough tongue that turns colors during the day (of course, you need to brush it off each day too) I feel like I'm back at the starting point.  From what I've read of our posts, antibiotic use and stress are the 2 main things that kick this off.

I also suffer from Acid Reflux and went on Omeprazole 2 months ago which is helping that tremendously but the OT remains.  Time will tell.

liz223

May 08, 2012

Last summer I started having small white lesions on the inside of my bottom lip, that then spread to the top lip. They never hurt and I diagnosed myself with oral thrush. The only thing I could think of that may have brought it on was burning my mouth badly on jalepenos and drinking beer at the same meal. Two months before I was on an antibiotic for a sinus infection. I took Nystatin and that really helped, almost cleared it, but the spots came back and I noticed I had an orange tongue and my throat was a bit sore. I ate yogurt and rinsed with baking soda and warm water twice a day and that really helped. I also cut out alcohol bc that seemed to make the spots spread. After about 6 weeks the spots and OT were gone as mysteriously as they had appeared, after I tried to stop worrying so much about it and destress.

I started having a sore throat and sinus drainage two weeks ago and went on an antibiotic, but this one had terrible side effects and though I feel better as far as my sinuses, and there are no white spots, the OT is back and I have the same throat pain and mouth feeling as I did before. Not sure if the infection is in my sinuses and not mouth this time, but I do think it is yeast/ bacteria related.

powellsk

May 09, 2012

To: Orange Tongue

I’ve had the same issue without any good advice from MD’s, some even asking me if I’ve eaten anything orange…HELLO, IM NOT THAT STUPID!!!!!!

Here is what I did and it WORKED!
I agree that its some kind of bacteria or fungi so the first thing I did was check my PH....sure enough it was below 5.0 when it should be at least 7.0, all kinds of nasty stuff can grow in your body when your PH is low (more Acidic). I assume this has more to do with diet than anything else but I can’t confirm that.

So I did 3 things that fixed the issue and it has not returned 1)I purchased AlkaMax alkaline support tablets and started taking 2 twice a day, 2) I started taking Grapefruit seed extract and Grape seed extract (best when mixed with grapefruit juice as it tastes awful this kills all the bad bacteria in your body and preserves the good bacteria, and 3) stopped eating sugar, sugar seemed to stimulate the growth of the orange monster in my mouth…

Since I started this regimen I haven’t had any other issues with an Orange Tongue and ‘Im happy its gone! Give it a try and see if it helps you!!!

birdntroutlady

May 26, 2012

To: Docknox

I also have OT and do know that it's a fungal infection-overgrowth. What I don't know is how it's triggered. I was exposed to some bad fungi when I taught high school from 1998-2007 when the school developed a LOT of fungi in the building. I left there and some of my respiratory problems were solved, but I still have OT. I do eat yogurt everyday and take probiotics also! I have contacted Mayo to see if there is someone who can help me.
I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia recently-think I've had it for years. I am now 65. Maybe someone, somewhere, sometime will find the reason/cause for the fungal "bloom" in people's mouths.

aussiesonly

Jun 07, 2012

To: Orange Tongue

I have been struggling with OT for a year now and doctors haven't been any help with this matter at all!

Last week was yet another doctor's opinion that wasn't any help and didn't put me any closer to an answer.  That doctor just looked in my ears and mouth and said other than being orange my tongue looked healthy.  He didn't seem to listen to me when I was telling him that I can brush it off and it comes back throughout the day and that it tastes sickly sweet in my mouth.  Sometimes it gets so thick I can scrape it up against my top teeth and the orange comes off onto my teeth and against my lips it feels gritty.  It is NOT just the color of my tongue!  It is something ON my tongue.

The dentist didn't think anything of it either.  My family doctor just shrugs his shoulders.

I've tried the lozenges for thrush to no avail.  I eat live culture yogert like it is going out of style.  No change.

When I first started noticing this OT it was after taking a strong antibiotic for 30 days for an acne-like infection on my face.  My first though was that it was a type of thrush.  I have alway been prone to getting thrush after being on an antibiotic but this was the first time it was orange instead of white.  White thrush had a metallic taste for me and this OT is a sick sweet taste.

I brush my tongue regularly with every teeth brushing.  I floss everyday.  I have tried gargling listerene everyday and that didn't do anything either.

After reading all the comments it DOES seem that this may stem from antibiotic use along with lifestyle and diet contributing to it.  Also I keep seeing postings about acid reflux.  I too have occational acid reflux.  I had a hiatal hernia repair 5 years ago and before that I was on prilosec two times a day.  But I never had OT then, it has only been this last year.  My acid reflux is less than one time a week and just take a couple of Tums and it goes away.

I am going to try the Ph theory.  I will test it and see if it IS too low.  I will start there.  I will also be going to my doctor AGAIN tomorrow with some of the suggestions on this list.  I'm finding that I am really going to have to be more stern and insistant with my doctor to get this solved.   It has been frustrating to say the least.  Embarrassing as well.......

edith1265

Jul 01, 2012

To: Everyone

I too, have joined the orange tongue phenomenon. It started about 3 months ago, after I had taken Cipro for a urinary tract problem, and at the same time I had been experiencing severe acid reflux and heartburn for 6 months.The acid reflux has been severe enough for me to start sleeping propped up on pillows, and it has helped a bit. I also have a metallic taste in the back of my throat that comes and goes. I have taken different over the counter meds for heartburn and nothing is working. My gastro doc has no idea why my tongue is discolored,or why I have had a metallic taste in my throat and doesn't seem to care. I'm scheduled for an endoscopy in a few days. I do have a hiatal hernia. I honestly believe Dr. Oz and aussiesonly are on to something....I'm pretty sure the antibiotic use and acid reflux are causing the tongue discoloration. I've used baking soda/peroxide toothpaste and the discoloration has subsided a bit, but always comes back. Keep posting people, the doctors don't seem to know what causes this.

Leo30009

Jul 17, 2012

To: everyone

1 more member for the OT Club ahve it a few months similar things seem to be occuring i prop myself up on pillows also as i origanaly thought i might have sleep apnea
i also suffer a lot from heartburn and get it bad when i use a toothbrush to remove the orange on my tongue,

I shall try the cutting out sugar for a week and see how that goes for me i'd say most likely it all stomach related and anyone with OT has something similar happening.

DoomSwitch

Aug 03, 2012

It started for me, a 25 year old male, after using crest complete care mouthwash. I think the mouthwash killed the natural flora in my mouth. I stopped using it and my tounge returned to normal. I started using complete care to try to prevent gingivitis after a gum injury. I recommend changing your toothpaste or not brush your teeth for a week to allow your mouth return to normal. Seriously.

BLD4009

Aug 08, 2012

I am a 32 year old female. About five years ago I developed OT; I believe it was caused by a course of antibiotics I was given as a preventative after surgery. Neither my doctors nor my dentist knew what it was. Doctors thought it was a reaction to what I was eating. My dentist believed me when I said it wasn't but still had no options to solve it. After several months of Dr’s visits and etc, I started researching on the internet, and came across something about using yogurt to treat Hairy Tongue. I thought it was as good a bet as anything, and even though I hadn’t been diagnosed with Hairy Tongue, it was the closest online diagnosis to my symptoms. I started eating a cup of Greek yogurt (with active cultures-important!) every day; usually with strawberries as I had also read either the magnesium or copper in the fruit helped as well (it's been awhile so I can't remember). I also severely limited the amount of candy or sugar I ate (natural sugars in food seemed to not affect the issue; meaning I could eat a high-in-sugar plum without making it worse, but hard candy or sugary icing on a cake would... although it wasn't affected by something like a brownie, so it seemed to react more strongly to the food's level of adulteration of white sugar). If I did have sugar I would brush (esp my tongue), floss, and gargle with Listerine as soon as I could. Within a month I was good; I stopped the yogurt regimen and went back to my normal consumption of sugar. The OT has not come back yet!

To sum up; ate active-culture yogurt with strawberries every day, limited consumption of sugar, brushed after consuming sugar, and it went away in a month. Good luck!

MojoShaw

Aug 21, 2012

To: BLD4009

I got a dental cleaning a couple of weeks ago and noticed my OT a few days later. I've eaten Greek yogurt nearly every day for at least a year, exercise daily, haven't taken any antibiotics in years - so it's none of those for me. Sounds like something I caught at the dentist but there were a couple of other things going on that could be culprits, according to what I've seen here: I'd just started taking sub-lingual B-12 (the kind you squirt under your tongue); I'd started drinking green smoothies at least once a day (tons of kale - possibly caused a PH change); and I usually work from home but had to drive into the office for a few days of training and was drinking the ice/water from a machine I doubt has ever been cleaned. I've been rinsing with salt water, just tried 2(HO) rinse last night and this morning. Sounds like doesn't that won't do much good but the Dr's remedies don't seem to be doing any better. I'm wondering if the long-term antibiotics some people have used actually work or if it's just the course of time... Oh, yeah and my wife's pregnant, so I kind of don't want to pass on to her

MojoShaw

Aug 21, 2012

To: MojoShaw

-Argh.Need an edit button: "Sounds like *that* won't do..."

bikerchickk

Aug 23, 2012

To: All

I too have OT and the only thing I have found that helps get rid of it, (until I start in again on the bad stuff) Is cutting out all corn syrup, sugar and gluten from my diet. I was told by my nutritionist that OT is caused by a fungus triggered by antibiotics or antibiotic mouth rinses. It throws the normal flora out of wack and then It feeds on sugars in your mouth. Acid reflux makes it grow faster.
I brush my tongue all the time like she told me without tooth paste and a bit of either vinegar or baking soda on my brush. This does help a lot more than tooth paste but I miss the minty freshness. I have had this now for over a year and it will go away if I stay strict on my diet, but then the sweet monster hits and I get it back again. I had no idea so many other people suffered from this. My nutrionist said this is really rare and few people ever get this. She has only ever seen one other person with it before me. She is a DR of nutrition by the way and not just a health nut who calls them self a nutritionist.

liebekim

Sep 20, 2012

Was on antibiotics for a long time and never once got OT while on the antibiotics. Went off of antibiotics for a year and then I got OT and Acid Reflux at the same time. Seemed to happen after eating lots of sugar daily and then getting dental work done.  I have tried to control it by eating more alkaline foods, food combining, taking an anti-fungal for 7 months now, and large doses of probiotics.  It is somewhat better, but not gone.

Now my 7 year old daughter has it!  She has not taken antibiotics. Recently, she had her teeth cleaned and then all of a sudden seems to have acid reflux, too, since she wakes up with a sore throat.

I am wondering if somehow sharing food, I passed this to her. I'm going to try antibacterial toothpaste and Colloidal Silver throat spray. Will also stop sugar, continue eating alkaline, taking probiotics, the antifungal, and take grapefruit seed extract.
For my daughter, I'm going to have her try the toothpaste and stop the sugar since she can't really take the Colloidal Silver and grapefruit seed extract. Hopefully this will work!

liebekim

Sep 20, 2012

To: Wildcat66

Wondering if the OT is gone. Can you post an update?

liebekim

Sep 20, 2012

To: raceegr

I agree with you on the dental work trigger. It happened to me. Can you post an update on how you are doing? Did the OT come back or so far so good?

RN_Janet

Oct 24, 2012

To: All

I had an orange tongue after I was sick and took a z pack. I've been brushing my teeth and tongue at night for years, and I was able to clean most of the orange off every night with toothpaste and a tongue scrubber, but it came back by the next night. Sugar made it come back faster. I had probiotic yogurt while I was on the z-pack and afterward. I tried mouth wash, it didn't go away. I tried colloidal silver for a week and it came back. I tried hydrogen peroxide, it came back. I combined the three and still my tongue was orange. I washed my toothbrush and got new ones so that I wouldn't reinfect myself. After all these things it still would come back, but not quite as bad.

I asked my MD and PA about it, we took samples but the results only showed normal oral flora. They prescribed an antibacterial mouth wash chlorhexidine, a chemical antiseptic. I did it twice, still had the orange. By this point it was not quite as bad, but it was still there every night. I had had an orange tongue for months.

I tried french kissing to get another person's bacteria to help my imbalance (after I had cleaned my tongue of course, and yes, he knew about the orange-ness).

I STILL had a slight orange tongue.

Finally I cleaned and washed my tongue with the same things as before, kissed the same someone for a couple of days, and then later in an act of desperation I took an old, worn toothbrush that belonged to someone else with normal oral flora... I scrubbed my mouth and cleaned my tongue with my own new toothbrush, rinsed and used mouth wash, and then scrubbed my tongue and mouth with someone else's old toothbrush.

Yes, it was gross, but my orange tongue didn't come back after that. I do believe that I had an imbalance of normal oral flora.

I never want to take an Azithromycin z pack again.

AcuteAngle

Nov 12, 2012

To: enstarza

Your comments were most helpful! I have a 5 year old who has suffered with acid reflux his whole life. The doctors try to control it with medication but nothing seems to work. A few weeks ago I noticed that his tongue was always orange, as if he'd been sucking on an orange candy or popscicle. This led me to research the issue and linked the acid reflux to the tongue discoloration. I am now trying your suggestions to see if this will help all of his symptoms and get his acid reflux under control for good! Thank you!

srbrown1x

Nov 12, 2012

Folks,

I haven't posted in over a year but I've also been free of orange tongue for over a year now too. That trip to my wife's allergist as a last resort where the blood test for H. Pylori that popped positive in minutes and the treatment therein solved my problem with orange tongue; note that I did not think I'd get any help from the allergist either but she actually listened, had a hunch, and took action rather than just saying that it was a cold or acid reflux.

I didn't take any homeopathics or other home remedies. It wasn't acid reflux (yes, I was checked). It wasn't black tongue or hairy tongue, and my mouth bacteria types and counts were fine.

It took 15 minutes at an allergist's office and a couple of copays between the allergist and the pharmacy after multiple doctors and frustration.

edith12655

Nov 21, 2012

To: everyone

I still have my orange tongue and my primary care doctor has prescribed Nystatin, an antifungal...the liquid that you swish around in your mouth and then spit out. If that doesn't work, I will try gentian violet, which is an old remedy for thrush, and is available from a pharmacy. I have noticed a few things....the orange seems to go away when I refrain from sugar. I had made an apple pie (yum) and used a cup of sugar in it, and within a few days the orange was more prevalent on my tongue. I have purchased some beet sugar to use as a substitute in baking, and if it doesn't work, then I will try no sugar at all in my diet. Yeast feeds on sugar, so I'm thinking this might be the problem with me. I do have acid reflux and a hiatal hernia, and that seems to have settled down a bit....no more metallic taste in my throat. Although this condition is not life threatening, even my doctor is perplexed. I also had taken a "Z" pack back in March 2012 when this started. I also had pigged out on about 50 Easter "Peeps" candy in the spring. Eventually, one of us will figure this out.

liebekim

Dec 12, 2012

To: OT sufferers with related Acid Reflux

I tried the non-drug route as explained in a previous post and it did not work.

My daughter and I took a round of antibiotics with probiotics and brushing with toothpaste that has tea tree oil and we have no more orange tongue. Flora was off in my body which made it an opportunistic environment for the bacteria to grow. BUT, the acid reflux has not gone away for me. For my daughter the acid reflux subsided except for when she eats sugar. She had OT only for 3 weeks before she started treatment. I had it for 10 months. I know the GERD and OT are related because they started at the same time for both me and my daughter. Either the flora is off in my GI tract or the bacteria is in my GI tract.

I am going to see a Digestive Dr. to see if he can give me a combo treatment with prevacid/prevpac/or something to treat the acid reflux and antibiotics at the same time. But, before do that I am going to try and fast for a couple days on jerky (which someone else tried above) to starve the bacteria and give them the opposite of sugar.

If anyone has had luck with curing OT and at the same time resolving the Acid Reflux, please post a comment such as lemonparade, guywithot, csaggie2000, or plantgrower.

srbrown1x

Dec 13, 2012

I still see a lot of posts blaming this or that, trying remedies and prescribed antibiotics, etc..

I think some of us had similar symptoms but different causes.  As I said in my earlier posts, I was tested by an allergist for a pin prick blood test for H Pylori and treated therein.  I haven't had a problem or discoloration on my tongue since.  I did the research on oral bacteria just as many of you have and had myself tested but the cultures came back negative.  Yet, some of us have posted that they have been diagnosed with oral bacterial infections.  Some have also posted that they have it and their other family members don't or vice-versa or even that they don't have it but their kids do.  To me this points to same symptoms for different causes.

Probiotics didn't help, brushing nearly constantly didn't help, homeopathics did nothing but drain my wallet.  I didn't think the allergist was going to do anything for me and I only went to her to make my wife happy.

By the way, my "gurgling" was cured when I went to a chiropractor and she worked me over good with pressure points along my spine between my shoulder blades.  I didn't even talk to her about my gurgle, I just spend a lot of time hunched over a computer at work and graduate school and wanted to work the kinks out of my posture.

Basically, I haven't had an orange tongue for quite some time, I don't gurgle or cough up phlegm anymore, and it wasn't an oral bacteria in my case.

Keep up the fight and you just might want to try the H. Pylori test if you at your wits end.

guntherb

Feb 15, 2013

To: DoomSwitch

Whoah. My wife bought that Crest stuff, and we were out of normal mouthwash for awhile, so I started using it. Thought it would help with a bad taste in my mouth after a Z-Pak anti-biotic regimen. BAM, orange tongue. So I used it more, thinking it could help. Getting worse.

I keep seeing the references to an anti-biotic regimen in combo with onset of orange tongue. And now the Crest thing too.

I think you may be onto something... since the medical community seems to be at odds with each other.

aim74red

Mar 23, 2013

To those who took Zithromax, how long after taking it did the orange tongue develop? I had Zithro the middle of January and developed orange tongue about the beginning of March. Just wondering if it's related at all, or would it have shown up sooner than that?