LaWanda
Texas

Genetics may play a lead or supporting role in geographic tongue—one that looks like a map with areas marked by raised lines or borders. Stress, hormones, or allergies can trigger the bothersome but largely harmless problem. While its underlying cause remains a mystery, doctors say the condition occurs when small bumps called papillae that usually cover the tongue’s surface go missing. As papillae heal, the affected patches may change size, color, or location. Salty, spicy, hot, or acidic foods (especially fresh pineapple), and toothpastes with heavy flavoring or whitening agents can cause a flare-up. Mouth rinses with a numbing ingredient, topical corticosteroids, and zinc supplements may help ease symptoms. Some report relief with extra vitamin B complex. Also called benign migratory glossitis, geographic tongue is not linked to cancer.

Geographic Tongue The Saturday Evening Post

Dick R.

.South Carolina

Any mouth sore that lasts more than 10 days should be checked by a health care provider. Since yours has been tested, a home remedy might help ease the discomfort: Try covering the sore with a paste of baking soda and water, a moistened tea bag, or a little aloe juice several times a day. 
Or you could also try this: Mix equal amounts of milk of magnesia and diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and use a cotton swab to dab on just enough to cover the sore. People with persistent sores might also want to check their toothpaste for sodium lauryl sulfate—an ingredient that sometimes triggers the problem. We suggest taking extra lysine, a safe and inexpensive amino acid, for cold sores caused by the herpes simplex virus. Mouth sores may also result from a B vitamin or iron deficiency or a sensitivity to gluten, a protein found in grains and other foods (see related information on page 44). We invite Post readers’ to send us remedies that worked for them.

Lingering Mouth Sore The Saturday Evening Post