Autumn 2008

Sometimes there's nothing better in the  Autumn , than sitting down to enjoy a hot chocolate, hot coffee, hot soup or hot, steaming pizza. And sometimes there's nothing worse than those very things for causing an immediate burn on your tongue or, as is often the case with pizza, on the roof of your mouth.

The official medical term for a burnt or inflamed tongue is "glossitis," while the burn on the top of your mouth from that sizzling pizza is often professionally referred to as (are you ready?) "pizza burn"!

Why does the inside of our mouth burn so easily? Well, when you consider that the roof of your mouth is only millimetres thick, it's easy to imagine the impact of hot cheese on these tender membranes. The good news is that because the surface of our mouth and tongue is made up of mucus membranes, our mouth heals faster than other parts of our body.

Call them what you like, there is no quick, easy fix for these oral irritations. The first thing to do if you burn your tongue or the roof of your mouth is to start sucking on an ice cube as soon as possible, to help neutralize some of the tissue reaction and lessen the pain. The ice will also reduce the chance of any additional swelling and irritation, but be sure not to actually bite into the ice as you could crack your tooth and end up with more problems that you started with!

One way or the other, any burn in your mouth should clear up in a few days. In the meantime, be sure to avoid spicy foods, acidic foods and foods with sharp edges, such as potato chips, which could further irritate your burn.