[Oneota]

Weirdest thing: I used Listerine to numb a canker sore before I went to bed the night before last, and noticed that my tongue burned just a little more than usual; Listerene always has that effect on your mouth, so I didn't think too much of it. Then yesterday I noticed that nothing tasted quite right. It seems to me that the taste buds in the center of my tongue just aren't working anymore. The ones on the back, tip, and sides seem to be okay, though.

Has anyone else experienced anything like this? Is it only temporary? It's almost like I burned my tongue, only it was just antiseptic!

[milhous]

so i assume you use it regularly? if that's the case, give it a day or two like when you eat or drink something that's too hot which burns your tongue takes the taste buds some time to regenerate. but this is certainly the first time i've ever heard of such thing.

if after a few days, there's no difference, i'd go see a doctor about it. if it goes away, just use less of the product when you rinse.

i tell you what though, listerine works! accept no substitutes!

[Oneota]

That's what I'm hoping, too - that it'll just go away after a couple days. What's still weirder, though, is that I've had this just-used-Listerene aftertaste in my mouth ever since it happened. Even my saliva kind of tastes like Listerene. Very odd.

[TETENAL]

.

[Oneota]

Originally posted by TETENAL:
I don't think there are many taste buds in the middle of the tongue.

Well, there must be some, 'cause that's where the listerene aftertaste is coming from, and that's where things don't taste right.

Those regions you showed might be where the sour, sweet, etc tastes are most accentuated (or where the buds that taste those kinds of things are most heavily concentrated), but there are definitely taste buds in the middle, 'cause mine are out-of-whack.

[TETENAL]

.

[Oneota]

Originally posted by TETENAL:
As far as I know there are no more tastes than sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. Everything more differentiating is actually olfaction.

I don't think I suggested anything to the contrary. I just said that there are buds in the middle as well as on the edges of the tongue.

[CharlesS]

Originally posted by TETENAL:
I don't think there are many taste buds in the middle of the tongue.

The taste bud map is a myth.

http://www.asha.org/about/publicatio...4/f021022a.htm

[Visnaut]

That happened to me before, but not due to listerine. I had some Dentine gum, one of the new flavours, like cinnamon blast or some nonsuch like that, and for two, maybe three days, I couldn't taste much. It went away eventually, and so should yours.

[wataru]

Isn't Listerine just minty alcohol? I'd just give it some time. The body is pretty good at healing itself.

[MilkmanDan]

Stop chugging the bottle. That might help.

[milhous]

get your tastebuds back oneota?

[Cubeoid]

be thankful, forget taste and focus your energy on other stimulations like sex and alcohol.

[Millennium]

I've never heard of Listerine killing taste buds before, but I do know people who've killed their taste buds using other things, so I suppose it's possible.

That said, I've also never heard of using Listerine as a canker-sore remedy. I've usually used Kank-A or Gly-Oxide myself. A hydrogen peroxide rinse also works well, just as long as you make sure to not swallow.

My stepfather-in-law-to-be uses silver nitrate. Frankly I don't have the guts to try that one, but he claims better results than anything else.

[turtle777]

Originally posted by Oneota:
Even my saliva kind of tastes like Listerene. Very odd.

Maybe your mouth started Listerene production.
Could you make money of it ?

-t

[Oneota]

Originally posted by milhous:
get your tastebuds back oneota?

Yup! It's much better now (though I haven't yet gone back to my usual Listerene regimen). Thanks!

[Oneota]

Originally posted by turtle777:
Maybe your mouth started Listerene production.
Could you make money of it ?

-t

Naw, I think my taste buds just OD'd on the stuff. Now that their hangover is over, it's all good.

[KP*]

Originally posted by Millennium:
I've also never heard of using Listerine as a canker-sore remedy.

I don't use it so much to kill the pain, but I do use it more often when I have a sore, on the theory that it kills the germs that would infect the sore and prevent it from healing. I'm not a doctor (or a dentist), but I do find that the sores heal faster when I use more Listerine. It also makes it feel a little better too.

[Oneota]

Originally posted by KP*:
I don't use it so much to kill the pain, but I do use it more often when I have a sore, on the theory that it kills the germs that would infect the sore and prevent it from healing. I'm not a doctor (or a dentist), but I do find that the sores heal faster when I use more Listerine. It also makes it feel a little better too.

That's exactly why I use it, too. It just kills the germs and makes it more bearable for about 30 minutes, which is usually long enough for me to get to sleep (at which point, I don't care about how much it hurts anymore ).

[MacMan4000]

Originally posted by MilkmanDan:
Stop chugging the bottle. That might help.

Don't try this at home