Throat gets sore from talking too long

Larry449

Three and a half years after radiation (last radiation 8/30/21) I’m still finding that if I talk too long my throat gets dry, I start coughing and stays sore for hours afterwards. I get CT scans once a year and continue to see my ENT every four months, my last appointment being just 5 days ago. CTs are always clear. Every ENT exam so for has been “no lesions, no tumors, no reoccurrence. But this insane dry, raspy cough is driving me nuts. Sipping water helps some but once it starts even lozenges (I used Ricola no sugar) don’t help much. I just need to stop talking for awhile and ride it out. I’m thinking about maybe a different lozenge, maybe Fisherman’s Friend, but from past experience I don’t like menthol. Help!

wbcgaruss

Hi, Larry, so glad to see your scans are still clear, still good, still clear, wonderful news.

As far as your throat getting dry after you talk a while, I have the same thing and it is due to damaged salivary glands from the radiation, and you are not getting the saliva flow you used to before treatment. At least that is my situation and maybe yours.

If I plan to talk say on the phone for a while or even do some yard work or something that I will be breathing extra I take a stick of Trident gum and you can either chew it or just fold it in half and put it between your cheek and gum and for me it stimulates saliva. Chewing gum itself stimulates saliva in anyone. But the Trident gum has a good percentage of Xylitol in it, which is considered good for head and neck people because it is a sugar-free sweetener and helps with dental care and other benefits. A dental hygienist told me to choose products with the highest amount of Xylitol in them, and you can do this by looking at the ingredients, and the closer to the start or top of the ingredient list, Xylitol is, the more Xylitol the product has in it. Also, you can try Xylimelts, which I mainly use for nighttime sleeping, but their purpose is to stimulate saliva and will work any time you sleep or talk. You know any of these products can be used anytime the only difference with the Xylimelts is they have a surface on one side that sticks to your tooth, so it stays put during sleep, and takes the risk of swallowing it while sleeping.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/xylitol-101#what-it-is

So the gum chewing, or just putting between my cheek and gum, and holding it there, stimulates my saliva, and the sweetener of Xylitol adds sweetness and protects dental health…and my mouth and throat don't get dry from talking.

The importance of saliva

https://www.deltadental.com/us/en/protect-my-smile/oral-anatomy/the-importance-of-saliva.html

Xylitol boosts dental health

Many dentists recommend using xylitol-sweetened chewing gum — and for good reason.

StudiesTrusted Source have determined that xylitol boosts dental health and helps prevent tooth decay.

One of the leading risk factors for tooth decay is an oral bacteria called Streptococcus mutans. This is the bacteria most responsible for plaque.

Although some plaque on your teeth is normal, excess plaque encourages your immune system to attack the bacteria in it. This can lead to inflammatory gum diseases like gingivitis.

These oral bacteria feed on glucose from food, but they can not use xylitol. As such, replacing sugar with xylitol reduces the available fuel for the harmful bacteria.

While these bacteria cannot use xylitol for fuel, they still ingest it. After absorbing xylitol, they are unable to take up glucose — meaning that their energy-producing pathway is clogged and they end up dying.

In other words, when you chew gum with xylitol or use it as a sweetener, the harmful bacteria in your mouth starve to death.

In one studyTrusted Source, xylitol-sweetened chewing gum reduced levels of bad bacteria by 27–75%, while friendly bacteria levels remained constant.

Animal studies also suggest that xylitol may increase absorption of calcium in your digestive system, protecting against osteoporosis and strengthening your teeth.

Human studiesTrusted Source demonstrate that xylitol — either by replacing sugar or adding it into your diet — can reduce cavities and tooth decay.

Because inflammation is at the root of many chronic diseases, reducing plaque and gum inflammation could have benefits for the rest of your body as well.

I have had some coughing lately, I call them coughing fits where my throat seems to have sort of a tickling feeling and once I start coughing have a hard time quitting so I found if I use lozenges for that, CVS Honey Lemon it relieves it rather quickly. This is an effect unrelated to this subject you presented, but I blame that on aging and changing or something going on with past radiation areas.

So the products I use for dry mouth and coughing are Trident Gum, Xylimelts, CVS Xylimelt copy and CVS Honey Lemon Cough Drops. The cough drops have a good, mild flavor but a mild menthol effect, which you say you dislike. Maybe give them a try and see if the mild menthol is tolerable for you. CVS makes a Dry Mouth Spray, which helps, something else to look at.

Also, my dental hygienist recommends Squigle Tooth Paste and Act Dry Mouth Mouth Wash, and to keep the mouthwash in swishing it around for at least 30 seconds.

Images below…I hope something here works for you.

Wishing You The Best

Take Care, God Bless

Russ

Mavish

The same happening here after 8 years later. In addition to Russ's reccomendations. I use toothpaste called Remin. It is very gentle. Regular tootthpaste gives me a burning mouth.

If I am in a meeting that I need to talk a bit ( especially in the morning hours) I have a cup of coffee with cream with me. I found this better than just water. Coffee cream acts like put a cream on my dry skin, I guess.

M

Larry449

Thanx for the suggestions, Russ. I’ll try the Trident gum and if I can find it, the toothpaste. I’ve been using Sensodyne toothpaste since radiation because it’s the only one that didn’t burn my mouth. For lozenges I use Ricola lemon mint (no sugar). I’ve tried the Act mouthwash but I have a real problem with (almost) everything flavored with mint: see my comment on toothpaste. They do have a bubblegum flavor but it’s just too sweet. I’ve tried biotene dry mouth moisturizing gel - it says “Flavor free”. HA! Apparently they’ve never tasted it, it has its own flavor which is exceedingly sweet! In addition to the damage radiation did to saliva glands, it also altered taste buds. Flavors I used to like, now not so much. Sweetness can be a bother as it lingers. The Xylimelts; IF I can make them stick they work ok but my mouth seems crowded maybe(?) and I end up throwing half of them away. And yes, the “coughing fits”, once they start they’re self regenerating. If I catch the raspy throat early enough sipping a little water or one of my lozenges help. I will try the Trident and the squiggle and maybe give the Oral Spray a shot.
Thanx again!

Larry449

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1721561#Comment_1721561

I know what you mean by a burning mouth. I don’t know what flavor Remin is but I’d like to strangle whoever decide everything, toothpaste, mouthwash et al, had to be mint flavored. I use Sensodyne toothpaste. It’s got a little mint flavor but it’s the only one that didn’t burn after radiation. Sometimes I just brush with a little baking soda. I might be weird but I actually like the taste and it does freshen my mouth, at least temporarily.

wbcgaruss

Larry, I have often read how radiation and H&N treatment can add up and in later years change and give different effects. You are getting some of them now as many of us have, and we have this new normal to deal with.

Also, operations can cause odd things and feelings by affecting nerves, mainly I guess by cutting them during an operation or disrupting them in some way in the operation, they can send improper or odd signals.

And I am experiencing a couple of my own odd side effects.

I have one such thing that started about a year and a half ago, where in the back of my mouth at my rear molars it feels like it is pinching the skin on the inside of my mouth and it can be a bit painful and sore at times. It may last for a couple of weeks or more, and it stops, but it comes and goes. I checked with my ENT about it and he looked in my mouth and felt my cheek for anything unusual and he said everything looks and feels perfectly normal. ( I have had clear scans)

My ENT told me due to my radical neck dissection some nerves were cut and affected and this can give these feelings of soreness and pain in my cheek area when there really is no problem, a false pain or signal I guess you could call it.

I have all the normal effects like dry mouth, neuropathy, etc, but have gotten a new one starting roughly a year ago.

I used to like hot peppers on a sub now and then pre-cancer, and it tasted good, but it would make my head sweat a lot till it was running down.

Fast forward now post-cancer and I can't get near hot peppers.

And in the last year, I have been getting increasingly sensitive to anything with even a slight amount of spices in it. Spaghetti sauce, table pepper, lunchmeat with spices in it, etc., anything that is even slightly spicy now makes my head sweat to the point of me putting a handkerchief tied on my head, and when I am done eating it is soaked totally. Some things I can eat but others I completely avoid now. So, being out of treatment, things can pop up to surprise us and then we have to figure a way to deal with this new thing.

Larry, I hope with your side effects you are able to adapt to all of them somehow, that is very tolerable. I know I always have a cup of coffee or water to sip on or I get dry.

The cough too started recently for me, and as you say, if you can get a lozenge in quick or drink something to settle it, you are OK, but once started the cough just keeps tickling your throat till you cough radically, and it makes things sore and wears you out.

As far as the Squigle toothpaste goes, I would say it is neutral, I don't notice a mint or spearmint flavor to it, and they say it is a very non-harsh paste.

I buy it on eBay, or here is their website, you can buy there also, link below...

Welcome to SQUIGLE® Oral Care Squigle® outperforms regular toothpaste in every way.

Dr. Edward Cutler, Inventor of Squigle's Toothpastes

https://www.squigle.com/

Wishing You The Best Larry

Take Care, God Bless

NEGU (Never Ever Give Up)

Russ