If you have recently developed painful and annoying mouth ulcers but do not know why, you may want to take a look in your medicine cabinet.  If you are being treated for an infection, it is important to know that antibiotics cause mouth ulcers.  While it is true that not every person will develop a mouth ulcer over the course of antibiotic treatment, those who take antibiotics for an extended period of time are at an increased risk of developing mouth ulcers.  This is due to the fact that long-term antibiotic use can cause normal microbes to become imbalanced.  When the protective, beneficial microbes that typically exist in our mouths are eliminated due to the effects of antibiotic use, the results are often detrimental.

Fortunately, although antibiotics cause mouth ulcers, they can generally be avoided by restricting your antibiotic use to only a week or so at a time (which is generally enough time for a typical course of antibiotics to do their job), and by reducing the acidity in your diet over the duration of your antibiotic treatment.  There are a couple of ways to do this, either by lowering the acidity in your diet or by taking antacids after meals.  This prevents your saliva and stomach acids from overpowering the remaining microbes in your mouth and damaging your mucus membranes.  Of course, even taking the most diligent precautions cannot prevent all mouth ulcers.

If you do find yourself suffering from mouth ulcers as a result of antibiotic treatment, rest assured that they can be managed.  Don’t be surprised if you develop secondary ulcers during or immediately following your antibiotic regimen.  The best way to treat antibiotics-caused mouth ulcers is to stop taking antibiotics.  This means that if your antibiotic treatment is nearing an end, you will likely be able to manage the pain caused by your mouth ulcers though the use of topical pain relieving products, and you should be able to expect them to clear up on their own within a few days of ceasing your antibiotic regimen. 

Of course, it is never advised to cease taking antibiotics sooner than your doctor prescribes.  This can mean that you have to take them long term, despite the fact that they cause or contribute to mouth ulcers.  In these cases, you can still generally turn to topical pain relieving products.  However, you are also probably going to want to incorporate antibacterial mouth wash into the treatment process to prevent infection.  Additionally, you will want to mention to your doctor that you believe you are developing mouth ulcers as a result of your antibiotic treatment.  He or she may be able to prescribe you an alternative antibiotic or recommend the most effective course of treatment for your mouth ulcers.

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