My Tongue is Gross

Xaev

So a week or so back, I noticed that my tongue has a sort of white film covering most of the top of it. It hasn't caused any pain nor have I noticed any funny tastes consistently in my mouth. I've never seen anything like this before and it hasn't responded to extra brushing, so I'm looking for solutions. I brush once a day (I know, not as often as I should) and don't use floss or mouthwash. Will picking up a container of mouthwash help me dispose of this disgusting problem or should I do something more in depth?

Figgy

There are several causes for a white film on your tongue, and google will tell you a whole lot about them.

Off the top of my head, it could be due to a build up of dead skin cells, like if you don't brush it enough or you're dehydrated.

Try brushing your tongue a bit better or even rinsing with a cup of salted water (1tsp salt to about a cup of warm water) every day.

Try scraping the white film off with a popsicle stick or something similar. Does it scrape away and leave a reddened area? That could mean infection. If your problem persists after a few days of brushing and rinsing, see a doctor.

Lail

Start with drinking more water and improving your dental hygiene. It may solve everything.

FyreWulff

First thought is dehydration. How much water are you drinking currently?

Killgrimage

This might not be an infection or anything at all but just "gunk" leftover from your food eaten during the day. I know I usually have a white film by bedtime and sometimes I can totally feel it on my tongue near the back of my mouth, and this is especially after eating something with chemical additives or food coloring (like candy). Extra brushing helps but doesn't take all of it off. You can pick up a tongue scraper from CVS or whatever ( it kinda looks like this shape ----D ) and you'd be surprised the amount of white crap you get off your tongue with it. It also makes your mouth feel/taste better.

xeviq

Eat more yogurt, it could be a yeast infection.

Reckless

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographic_Tounge

This could be it. I've got this but it's not nearly as gross-looking as those pictures would suggest.

EDIT: Also, dude, brushing once a day is very gross and terrible for the health of your mouth. Ramp it up to 3 times a day.

DHS Odium

At an absolute minimum you should be brushing twice a day. Flossing and mouthwash are a good idea, I'm inconsistent with my use of these however, sometimes I'll skip a day or two.

Buy a tongue scraper, you can find them in any grocery store I think, that should help your problem.

Tinuz

My routine has always been:

Before bed: Floss -- Brush very well -- Use mouthwater

Morning: Brush -- Use mouthwater

And then 2 more 'quickies' after meals. It took care of a sort of yellow-whiteish stain on my tongue. Also, get a tongue scraper, they help wonders to get the crap of off your tongue.

Mojo the Avenger

It could be thrush. Thrush is a fungal infection. Try all this other stuff first and if nothing helps your doctor can write you a prescription to take care of it.

edit: sorry a yeast infection. I wasn't aware that yogurt could help. Try that before you go looking for drugs.

streever

and don't brush hard
I know it's not that relevant, but I see lots of "brush well" comments--
Folks, I went to the dentist for the first time in 14 years recently
NO CAVITIES woohoo but my gums have receeded, supposedly due to brushing hard

apparently you should be brushing really softly, more of a flick action...

If you go to a dentist, might as well ask them to demonstrate good brushing technique.

TRICorp

I just burnt the shit out of my tongue with hot coffee. Now, it too, looks pretty gross. Happened recently?

Xaev

I don't drink coffee, so no, it's not that. Looking at it more closely now, it's started to fade on the front of my tongue where I can brush without vomiting (I have a very sensitive gag reflex) so hopefully getting a tongue scraper and some mouthwash the next time I'm at the store will clear it right up.