Why do pregnant women drool when they sleep?

When we sleep, we often find that when we wake up, the places where we slept are covered with saliva. Drooling while sleeping is generally quite common. It is also normal for pregnant women to drool while sleeping. It is usually caused by physical changes during pregnancy.

Why does a pregnant woman drool while sleeping?

1. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to weak spleen and stomach

Pregnant women drool when they sleep. Chinese medicine believes that this is caused by weak spleen and stomach. Because the spleen controls muscles in the human body and opens to the mouth, if the spleen is weak and the body's metabolism is abnormal, the internal organs and limbs will not be nourished, the muscles will lack elasticity and easily relax, so after falling asleep, the mouth will open and drool will flow out. There are many reasons for this, such as unbalanced diet, excessive work and rest, or long-term illness that leads to weakened spleen and stomach motility, water retention, spleen and stomach dampness and heat, or food stored in the stomach descending, and stomach heat steaming up, which is the so-called "restlessness when the stomach is not harmonious."

2. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to incorrect sleeping posture

Drooling while sleeping may be caused by improper sleeping posture, such as sleeping on the table, sleeping on the side, etc. In this case, you only need to adjust your sleeping posture appropriately to reduce the occurrence of drooling.

3. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to neuroregulation disorders

The regulation of saliva secretion is completely neuroreflexive. The so-called "looking at plums to quench thirst" is an example of conditioned reflex saliva secretion. Therefore, if the neuroregulation is impaired, drooling during sleep may also occur.

4. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to oral diseases

If you drool while sleeping, and your pillowcase is yellowish, it is probably due to poor oral hygiene. If there is an ulcer in your mouth, the pain will stimulate saliva secretion and induce drooling. At this time, you can use medicine to promote the healing of the ulcer, and the drooling will disappear automatically.

5. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to facial neuritis or stroke

Pregnant women who have been exposed to cold, wind or cold face and suddenly drool while sleeping should be alert. You can smile in front of the mirror. If you find that the corners of your mouth are crooked, or your eyes cannot close tightly, or you have a headache, it may be a precursor to facial neuritis or stroke. It is best to go to the hospital for relevant examinations immediately.

6. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to dental deformities

Some pregnant women with facial and dental deformities often have open lips and exposed teeth due to the obvious protrusion of the front teeth. It is difficult for the lips to completely cover the front teeth when sleeping. The upper and lower lips often separate naturally, making them prone to drooling. It is recommended that such patients correct their teeth as soon as possible after the end of pregnancy.

7. Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be due to neurological abnormalities

If a pregnant woman has autonomic nervous system disorder, her parasympathetic nerves may become excited during sleep, which will cause the brain to send wrong signals, leading to increased saliva secretion and drooling during sleep.

Reasons why pregnant women drool while sleeping

1. Caused by genetic factors

Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may also be related to congenital genetic factors. If it is congenital anterior tooth deformity, it is easy to cause drooling while sleeping. It should be noted that anterior tooth deformity may also be caused by acquired bad nail biting behavior. Be sure to avoid biting nails with teeth, biting pencil heads, etc.

2. Caused by neuroregulatory disorders

Neuroregulatory disorders are also a reason why pregnant women drool while sleeping. Because the nerves that control saliva secretion are stimulated, a regulatory reflex occurs, resulting in a large amount of saliva secretion, causing drooling while sleeping. This situation is the same as what we call "looking at plums to quench thirst".

3. Caused by incorrect sleeping posture

Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be related to the wrong sleeping posture. Generally speaking, pregnant women can sleep on their backs in the early stages of pregnancy and on their left sides in the middle and late stages of pregnancy. The wrong sleeping posture may cause pressure on the mouth or other parts of the body, which may cause pregnant women to drool while sleeping.

4. Caused by insufficient oral hygiene

One of the reasons why pregnant women drool while sleeping is poor oral hygiene. If there are food residues, sugar substances or other residual bacteria in the mouth, it is easy to cause a large number of bacteria to multiply in the mouth, which is not only easy to cause oral diseases during pregnancy, but also stimulate drooling while sleeping.

Self-test method: If the saliva tastes salty and the saliva stains are yellow, it is likely that the drooling is caused by poor oral hygiene.

5. Caused by oral diseases

Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be caused by oral inflammation such as gingivitis during pregnancy, which is closely related to poor oral hygiene.

Self-test: Do you have toothache or other discomfort, or is your saliva light yellow and salty?

5. Caused by acid reflux

Pregnant women drooling while sleeping may be caused by acid reflux. Due to changes in hormones in the body, the sphincter of pregnant women is prone to relaxation, which leads to acid reflux irritating the mucosa and causing drooling while sleeping. In addition, the enlargement of the uterus after pregnancy can easily cause acid reflux.

Self-test method: You can feel stomach acid surging up and a burning sensation in your chest.

These may be the reasons

1. The temperature and humidity in the mouth are most suitable for the reproduction of bacteria. The accumulation of food residues or sugar substances between teeth and on the tooth surface is prone to caries and periodontal disease. These adverse factors are stimulating and can cause drooling while sleeping.

2. This may be due to genetic factors that lead to acquired bad habits, such as biting nails, sticking out tongue, biting pencil heads, etc., which cause front teeth deformities and drooling while sleeping.

3. The regulation of saliva secretion is completely neuroreflexive. The so-called "seeing plums to quench thirst" is an example of conditioned reflex saliva secretion in daily life. Therefore, if the neural regulation is impaired, drooling during sleep may also occur.

4. When you sleep, you drool with a salty taste and your pillowcase is light yellow. This is probably due to poor oral hygiene, the accumulation of food residues, and the accumulation of tartar over time, which causes gingivitis and even a small amount of bleeding gums. Therefore, when you sleep, your drool is salty and light yellow.

5. Pregnancy causes the sphincter to relax, which leads to acid reflux. After pregnancy, due to changes in hormones, the sphincter relaxes, and the food we eat easily comes up (the sphincter is located at the junction of the esophagus and the stomach, which makes the food we eat only go down and not come up). This causes the acidic contents in the stomach to reflux from the stomach to the esophagus, throat and mouth, irritating the mucous membrane.

6. The gradually enlarging uterus presses on the stomach and intestines, causing stomach acid to reflux more easily. In the late pregnancy, the growing uterus will also press on the stomach. In addition, hormones relax the muscles separating the esophagus and stomach, causing stomach acid to surge upward more easily and cause a burning sensation in the chest.

What to do if a pregnant woman drools while sleeping

(1) Pay attention to oral hygiene

In order to reduce the symptoms of drooling, pregnant mothers should ensure oral hygiene, brush their teeth in time after eating, rinse their mouths in time after meals, and develop the habit of brushing their teeth in the morning and evening and rinsing their mouths after meals, so as to effectively reduce the secretion of saliva.

(2) Seeking medical treatment

Pregnant mothers can go to a regular dental hospital for diagnosis and treatment, use cleaning therapy to remove tartar, take vitamin C and B2 and other medicines to eliminate gingivitis and reduce adverse stimulation.

(3) Correct sleeping posture

Pregnant mothers should adjust their sleeping posture and try to sleep on their left side. In addition, there are also particular sleeping positions in the early, middle and late stages of pregnancy. If pregnant mothers don’t understand, they can check out "Are Pregnant Mothers Sleeping Correctly" to correct their sleeping positions.

(4) Correct bad habits

Bad habits are also a factor that causes pregnant women to drool while sleeping. Therefore, if pregnant mothers have bad habits such as biting nails, biting pencil tips, sticking out tongue, etc., they should try to correct them.