Unboxing Swallowing Difficulty (Dysphagia), Its Impact on Health, and Possible Treatments

3 Strong Herbs to Treat Swallowing Difficulty

Are you experiencing swallowing difficulty, which is affecting your ability to eat and drink? Swallowing difficulty or dysphagia may initially appear as a minor issue but can cause extreme inconvenience if it does not resolve itself or is left untreated for a longer duration. Swallowing impairment delays the passage of liquids or solids through the oral cavity and is often accompanied by a painless sensation in the throat.

Abnormalities in the swallowing stages (esophageal, pharyngeal, or oral phases) appear to be the immediate cause of dysphagia. Any mechanical obstruction in the food pipe (i.e., esophagus, which is a muscular tube that connects the stomach to the mouth), neuromuscular disease, or inflammation that may reduce its motility can lead to swallowing difficulties.

Usually, the elderly experience swallowing difficulty more often than individuals of other age groups.   

Several research studies have reported an increase in the symptoms of dysphagia with advancing age.

More than 40% of people >60 years of age and 10–22% of those >50 years of age experience swallowing difficulties in a lifetime.

Do you know that difficulty swallowing can increase your risk of malnutrition and aspiration pneumonia (passage of liquid/food into the windpipe)? It can also reduce your overall health-related quality of life.

Difficulty swallowing may affect individuals in the short or long term, and accordingly, it is recognized as an acute or chronic condition, respectively. Painful swallowing or odynophagia may co-occur with dysphagia and the affected person could have a feeling of a mass or mechanical obstruction in the throat.

What are the causes of dysphagia?

When swallowing difficulty occurs due to obstructions, sensory changes, and muscle function impairment in the throat, it is known as oropharyngeal dysphagia. The potential causes of oropharyngeal dysphagia are:

1. Osteophytes (or bony lumps) in the cervical spine,
2. Head and neck surgery
3. Throat cancer
4. Neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease
5. Head injury
6. Muscle disorders
7. Infections
8. Multiple sclerosis
9. Central nervous system tumors
10. Stroke
11. Poor-fitting dentures
12. Chain smoking
13. Alcoholism

Patients with oropharyngeal dysphagia experience swallowing difficulty, cough during feedings, and sensation in the throat.

Read the complete article to learn more about dysphagia, its health implications, and possible remedies.

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