Solutions for Dry Mouth

Obvious solutions for dry mouth are good things to drink , and drinking enough good things on a daily basis. It is not enough to swallow huge amounts of water on the day of the gig.  A few hours before is  already too late for the body to effectively process and integrate the moisture into the body systems.  Pay attention to what you’re swallowing at least the day before, if not a full week before the voice engagement.

Water, room temperature or warmed, with lemon:  simple and, generally, the most effective.  Iced water, unless you’re battling heat, is not the best.  Matching water temperature to body temperature eases what the vocal instrument must do to use the liquid;  if it’s iced, the body has to warm it up.

Caffeine and alcohol dry.  In fact, drinking anything with caffeine or alcohol actually absorbs moisture and sends it OUT of the body.  It is an astringent. If you have a cup of coffee or a beer, fine, but drink 2 glasses of water to counteract it.

Lastly, over-tension dries, and, in terms of dry mouth, this is particularly true of over-tension in the jaw.  It’s always better to sing or otherwise use your voice with a free and open jaw – the sound comes out better that way – And, if your jaw is locked or tight on stage, you are constricting the very passages that are suppose to be watering the vocal folds.

So, loosen that jaw!