Sore tongue...

[expatnow]

Hi all- I have had a sore tongue for weeks now. It is accompanied by white lace- like lines on the sides or the outline of thin white lines. For quite awhile my tongue hurst when I eat certain foods- tomatoes etc. I went to the doctor and they thought it was a vitamin deficiency and put me on B complex and an oral gel. It helped a bit, but the problem is still there. Any ideas? I've also had a few colds and at the moment generally feel run down. My diet is good, although I am a vegetarian and I take Pregnacare and aspirin.

Hi, this sounds like 'Geographic Tongue' - completely harmless but sometimes uncomfortable. Mine comes and goes when I have been run down with colds etc and especially when pregnant. Try googling to see if pictures match.

I'm smiling at what sounds like a fellow Geographic tongue sufferer...we are rare beings!
What you have described is what I have had all my life - sore red patches on tongue, sometimes food related, sometimes random. Generally red with white edges. Acidic things set it off and some other triggers like nuts, kidney beans and vinegar crisps.. not always though.
You are correct, it has been linked to a vit B deficiency and I have had supplements on and off since birth.
What is interesting though is that I had some problems with getting pg and mcs and had all the standard tests - what they revealed for the first time in my life is that I have a blood disorder called homozygous MTHFR which bascially means my body is not capable of processing or storing B vits efficiently - thus proving in one test that I am indeed deficient in B vits and I have been on high dose folic acid ever since (and tons of marmite!)...not a sore patch to be felt.

So, welcome to the elite club! Up your vit B, keep taking the supplements and you'll probably find it will go after your pg. x

Ooooh me too - I found it was particularly bad when I was going through a phase of drinking pints and pints of lime cordial a day! Since I've cut that out it's much better......

Hello,

Don't know anything about the geographic tongue, but should you be taking aspirin while pregnant? I thought the only safe painkiller was paracetamol.

Asprin is sometimes prescribed to reduce the chances of clotting e.g. if you've had a miscarriage before.

Yup my aspirin is precisely because of clotting issues which is also a side effect of my blood disorder.