What your tongue says about your health

As I like to say “the tongue never lies, only when it’s speaking” 😝

Nonetheless, it is beneficial to check your tongue daily and scrape it with a metal instrument (preferably copper) first thing in the morning, before brushing your teeth. It is essencial to keep oral and gastrointestinal health.

What's is your dosha?

An indication of good health is when your tongue has a rosy-red uniform tone, a coating that is not thick (when you can still see the tongue body color), no cracks, bumps, swellings or indentations, it doesn’t shake or tremble and it has good moisture. Anything different means the onset of imbalances or diseases. The tongue is also a micro system where major organs are reflected.

A few examples:

1. 👅 The presence of coating means that you have ama (toxins) accumulation in your GI tract.

2. 👅 Swelling indicates that a specific organ represented there is ill.

3. 👅 Changes in color may mean anemia (pale) or severe anemia (purple)

4. 👅 Teeth marks along the edges can be either malabsorption or actual teeth marks from clenching

5. 👅 Cracks and tremors mean Vata imbalance which can translate to dryness, mental health / emotional issues

6. 👅 Red patches mean Pitta imbalance, which can translate to heat and inflammation

7. 👅 Swellings mean Kapha imbalances, which can translate to congestion, growths, deposits, liver issues

There’s so much more to tongue diagnosis! It is so fascinating that it reveals imbalances even before it shows up in exams!

But please note that the tongue diagnosis is just one piece of the puzzle that is the human body. Other signs and symposium need to be taken in consideration for a decisive prognosis.

👅 Tongue scraping in the morning

Tongue scraping (jihvā nirlekhana) is first described in Ayurveda in the classical text Charaka Saṁhitā (c. 1500–500 BCE), where it appears as part of oral health. It is recommended to remove impurities, improve taste, prevent oral diseases, and stimulate the digestive organs.

While you sleep, your body pushes toxins, mucus, and digestive residues toward the surface of the tongue. Scraping simply finishes the job your body is already trying to do.

Modern medicine now confirms several benefits:

• more balanced gastrointestinal health

• reduction of toxic load

• healthier oral and gut microbiome

• prevention of bad breath

• decreased inflammation

• prevention of oral-hygiene–related conditions (cavities, gum disease, and even certain oral and esophageal cancers)

If your gastrointestinal tract could talk when you ignore that white coating in the morning, it would say:

“I spent the whole night doing cleanup and you won’t even take out the trash? Honestly…” 😅

⏰ When to scrape?

First thing in the morning, before drinking water, eating, or brushing your teeth.

🧰 What to use?

• Metal scraper (copper is top-tier: a natural antimicrobial). Found in pharmacies, markets, online…

• Plastic and silicone don’t actually scrape well.

🪒 How to scrape?

1. Place the scraper at the back of the tongue

2. Gently pull forward toward the tip

3. Repeat 2–3 times, until the coating is removed

🤢 If you gag: totally normal.Your body is just saying: “get this out of here NOW.”Go slowly, breathe through your nose, and you’re good.

To a balanced life!

Namaste,

Grazie Prokopetz, Doctor of Ayurveda

ABOUT AYURVEDA         

INSTAGRAM           

APPOINTMENTS