Oral thrush is an infection which is caused by excessive growth of the fungus Candida, which often affects the tongue first with large white spots or patches, then spreads to the insides of the cheeks, gums and roof of the mouth. To cure this infection, you will need a antifungal treatment prescribed by your doctor in order to fight this yeast infection and fully recover. In the following OneHowTo article you'll find some simple steps and health recommendations that can be taken so you can learn how to prevent oral thrush.
Firstly, we need to tell you that there is no method that can prevent oral thrush 100%, but it is possible to adopt certain measures that may reduce the risk of catching it. This type of infection caused by micro-organisms often affects:
- Babies and elderly people.
- People with weakened immune systems, as is the case with those living with HIV, diabetes or cancer.
- People with poor diets.
- People who are taking antibiotics.
- People who are experiencing hormone changes, such as pregnant women, women on their periods or going through menopause.
- People who suffer from dry mouth or who wear dentures.
As mentioned earlier, those with a weakened immune system are more vulnerable to developing oral thrush, so it is important that they maintain a healthy diet everyday, which needs to be especially high in vitamins A, C, and E, and minerals such as calcium, zinc and iron, the latter being essential to prevent diseases affecting your body's defenses such as anemia. In addition to these nutrients, it is also important to have a balanced diet, not missing a particular food group. And, of course, together with a good diet, you must ensure that you get enough sleep, physical exercise and do relaxing activities to help combat stress, because this is one of the emotional conditions that weaken the immune system.
For further information, read our article: how to boost your immune system.
Taking antibiotics also increases the risk of developing oral thrush, because this kind of drugs can destroy the healthy bacteria in the body which keeps the spread of the Candida yeast under control. That is why you should only take antibiotic treatments prescribed by your doctor, and if you are prone to developing oral thrush, you should ask your doctor to recommend anti-fungal medication.
Take good care of your daily oral hygiene , as this will be essential in order to maintain the normal balance of Candida and other bacteria in your mouth. In order to prevent an imbalance, it is recommended not to use too much mouth sprays and rinses, and follow these steps below:
- Brush your teeth frequently, ideally after every meal.
- Use dental floss.
- Rinse with a little salt water.
- If you wear dentures, take them out every night and always keep them clean.
High sugar levels in the blood also increases the chances of developing this fungal infection. For this reason, to prevent oral thrush, it is important that diabetics take care to control their sugar levels, strictly following their doctor's advice, and making the necessary changes to their diet and lifestyle habits. We advise reading the following articles, if you want to learn how you can control this condition:
- What are the best foods for diabetes
- How to use aloe vera for diabetes
At the beginning of this article, we pointed out that the babies are among the groups most likely to develop oral thrush and, as a method of prevention, it will be essential to thoroughly clean and sterilize both their dummies bottle teats after each use. If our baby is breastfeeding and suffering from oral thrush, it is important that you tell your doctor to find out how you can prevent future reinfection.
This article is merely informative, oneHOWTO does not have the authority to prescribe any medical treatments or create a diagnosis. We invite you to visit your doctor if you have any type of condition or pain.
If you want to read similar articles to How to Prevent Oral Thrush, we recommend you visit our Diseases & secondary effects category.