Watch: [Understanding Your Body] Mouth

⭐English subtitles available⭐

 

 

From birth to adulthood, individuals go through several stages of personality development.

 

The very first stage among them is the oral stage.

 

This is when individuals explore everything with their mouths, finding psychological comfort and pleasure.

 

The mouth, vital in nurturing both body and mind by chewing, tasting, and communicating

The mouth is also the most highly developed part of our body in terms of function and sensory abilities.

 

The mouth, which extends from the lips to the innermost throat, includes the lips, gums, teeth, tongue, uvula, and pharynx.

 

Among the many functions the mouth, the most representative is its role in digestion.

 

When food enters the mouth, the teeth chew and break it down into smaller pieces, while the tongue helps mix it with saliva.

 

The tongue, composed of muscle tissues, mixes the food and passes it down the throat.

 

Taste buds at the tip of fine projections on the surface of the tongue

detect the sweetness, sourness, bitterness, saltiness, and other flavors of food,

sending this information to the brain and allowing us to experience taste.

 

The saliva secreted by the salivary glands around the tongue not only moistens the food to make it easier to chew

but also washes away food debris, bacteria, and dead cells while keeping the mouth from drying.

 

Amylase, a digestive enzyme in saliva, also plays a direct role in digestion.

 

Commonly known as canker sores, lesions that occur on the tongue often arise

when the body's defenses are weakened due to fatigue or excessive stress,

and they typically improve with adequate rest without the need for treatment.

 

In addition to tasting and digesting food, the mouth also facilitates breathing and sound production,

as well as protecting the body from bacteria and viruses that enter through it.

 

The lips, which are the outermost part of the mouth, are rich in capillaries, giving them a reddish color,

and are densely populated with nerve endings, making them highly sensitive to temperature and touch.

 

They also play a vital role in the intake of food and sound production.

 

Inside the mouth are tonsils, including throat and tongue tonsils, which are rich in lymphocytes.

When bacteria or viruses enter the body through the mouth, these tonsils respond by triggering an inflammatory reaction,

which may cause the tonsils to become red and swollen, often accompanied by pain.

 

The pharynx, commonly referred to as the throat, serves as a passageway for food as well as a route for air during breathing.

 

When not eating, the epiglottis opens to allow air to pass through the trachea.

When eating, the epiglottis blocks the trachea opening to prevent food from entering the airway.

 

The mouth, which serves multiple functions, has a structure that is equally complex.

Consequently, various health issues may arise.

 

One common issue is halitosis, or bad breath, often used as an indicator of oral health.

 

If bad breath is severe, it is important to identify the underlying cause and seek appropriate treatment

Symptoms such as swollen gums or bleeding after brushing may indicate gum inflammation caused by tartar buildup.

 

For proper brushing, it is recommended to use a toothbrush that is neither too soft nor too hard, and to replace it regularly.