What causes children to drool?

For mothers, they often pay attention to their children's every move and will find a series of abnormal behaviors. For example, children often drool when sleeping or playing. Many people think this is a common phenomenon. In fact, it is not. Frequent drooling may be due to inadequate cleaning of the child, or it may be caused by a certain disease. Here are some reasons why children drool.

1. Poor oral hygiene

The temperature and humidity in the mouth are most suitable for the reproduction of bacteria. The accumulation of food residues or sugar substances in the gaps between teeth and on the tooth surfaces can easily lead to tooth decay and periodontal disease. These adverse factors can be stimulating and cause drooling while sleeping. Inflammation in the mouth can also increase saliva secretion. If the mouth is infected by bacteria, there will be obvious pain and drooling. Local medication is needed to promote ulcer healing and the drooling will disappear automatically.

2. Anterior tooth deformity

This may be due to genetic factors that lead to acquired bad habits, such as biting nails, sticking out tongue, biting pencil heads, etc., which cause front tooth deformities and drooling while sleeping.

3. Neuroregulation disorders

The regulation of saliva secretion is completely neuroreflexive. The so-called "looking at the plum to quench thirst" is an example of conditioned reflex saliva secretion in daily life. Some patients with neurosis or other systemic diseases that may cause autonomic nervous system disorders may also experience abnormal excitement of the parasympathetic nervous system during sleep, which may cause the brain to send erroneous signals and lead to increased saliva secretion. Therefore, disorders in neural regulation may also cause drooling while sleeping.

4. It may be due to improper sleeping posture.

Sleeping on the table or sleeping on your side can easily cause drooling.

5. In addition to oral problems, some systemic diseases may also cause drooling while sleeping.

6. Side effects of medication

One of the side effects of taking certain anti-epileptic drugs is drooling, so you need to pay attention when choosing drugs. Drooling while sleeping may be due to spleen deficiency. Some people are deeply troubled by "drooling while sleeping at night" and always find their pillows wet when they wake up in the morning. This minor problem seems to be just a personal habit problem and is difficult to correct. Have you ever thought that this is caused by spleen deficiency? Saliva, also known as saliva, refers to the clearer and thinner part of saliva. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that saliva is produced by the spleen qi and then transmitted and dispersed, hence the saying that "the spleen's liquid is saliva." When the spleen is sufficient, the spleen's "fixing and retaining" function and the production of saliva are normal, so saliva can be transported normally to help swallowing and digestion, but will not overflow from the mouth. However, in the case of spleen deficiency, the spleen's "fixing and retaining" function is disordered, saliva cannot be transported normally, and the phenomenon of "drooling" occurs.

Prevention and treatment methods

1. Wipe frequently.

For babies who drool frequently, you should wipe the saliva from their mouths at any time. Do not use force when wiping, just wipe the saliva gently to avoid damaging the local skin.

2. Keep clean.

Wash away saliva with warm water frequently and apply skin care products to protect the skin on the chin and neck. If allergic reactions such as urticaria have already occurred, the mother should first take the baby to the doctor for diagnosis, and the doctor will prescribe appropriate steroid ointment based on the individual symptoms. Young babies like to lick here and there. To avoid the accident of accidentally ingesting ointment, mothers can apply a thin layer of ointment or Vaseline on the affected area while they are asleep at night to serve as a protective film for the skin and speed up healing. In addition to cleaning the baby's mouth corners, mothers should not ignore the baby's cute little hands. Babies aged 3-5 months can already roll over, grasp toys, and often put things they grab into their mouths to taste them, forming a vicious cycle of "saliva dripping on toys → toys get covered in dust → baby grabs toys and puts them in mouth". Therefore, mothers should wash their babies’ hands frequently, tidy up the baby’s activity environment, and clean these toys regularly!

3. Wear a bib.

Bibs are a special piece of clothing for babies and are also a good helper for mothers in parenting. Not only can they protect outer clothes from getting dirty, so that mothers don’t have to deal with the hassle of cleaning the baby’s saliva, but they can also help children develop good habits of cleanliness and hygiene from an early age. Of course, the bib should always be kept clean and dry so that the baby will feel comfortable and happy to use it.

4. Change and wash clothes frequently.

Babies often drool on their shirts, pillows, beddings, etc. Mothers should wash and dry them frequently to avoid the breeding of bacteria and affect the baby's health.

5. Train more.

When adding complementary foods to the baby (4 to 6 months), the mother should consciously train the baby's ability to suck, suck, swallow and gulp; after the baby has teeth, try to feed him less semi-liquid or overcooked food, and choose slightly harder things (such as omelets, etc.) to improve his chewing ability.