Swollen taste buds

Puffed uptaste receptors on the tongue

The receptorsfor flavor on the tongue or so-called rose buds are what we call anyof the clusters of bulbous nerve endings on the tongue and in the lining of themouth which provide the sense of taste. They cover the top of thetongue, and their role is to receive various aromas of the food we eat. When thefood we eat reaches those special cells on our tongues we become able to detectwhether the food we eat is sweet, piquant, acidic or bitter. This piece ofinformation is further transferred into the brain via nerves specially intendedfor this purpose.

The receptorsfor detecting different tastes are not equally distributed over the surface ofthe tongue. For each type of flavor the tongue can distinguish there is a specialkind of cell and receptor, and they have their specific position on the tonguesurface. For instance, the receptors for sweet taste are positioned at the farfront of the tongue, while buds for detecting salty food are placed on thesides of the tongue. The back of the tongue is reserved for receptors ofbitterness, and sour food we detect by the buds positioned. In some cases thesebuds or receptors might swell, and there can be different reasons for this.

Culprits behindbud swelling

One of themore obvious reasons for getting swollen taste buds is the intake of extremelyhot food. Perhaps it has happened to you before, and you have probably noticedhow the surface of your tongue begins to hurt and to feel a bit puffy. Also, ifyou have eaten quite spiced food, your tongue may become a bit inflated. Apart fromspicy food, you can expect the same reaction to food that has been excessivelysalted. Some substances such as tobacco, alcoholic drink or insecticide mayprovoke more or less intense swelling of the taste buds.

Apart fromthe above mentioned, do not be surprised if you get tongue puffing after havingexperienced ulceration of the tongue, an allergic reaction to some kind offood. If you experience bud swelling, especially if it is regular, it might bethe case that you miss some vitamin or mineral in your nutrition, such asvitamin B. In case you hurt your tongue mechanically, you might get the sameproblem.

If youstart suffering from this problem, make sure to have proper mouth hygiene, to havesome yogurt or ice-cream when your tongue becomes irritated and to put on someglycerin on the wound if you have hurt your tongue.