How to Relieve Ammonia Odor in Uremia

Ammonia taste in mouth is a special symptom experienced by patients with Uremia. The symptom may be referred to in different words by the patients themselves, such as fertilizer taste, foul smell, etc. The odor changes with the illness condition, getting worse when the disease gets serious and alleviates when the illness condition is better. Well then, why the patients with Uremia experience ammonia odor? How to relieve the symptom?

Why Uremia causes ammonia odor?

In Uremia, ammonia odor is associated with high levels of blood urea nitrogen(BUN) in bloodstream. Blood urea nitrogen, a wasteful product of proteins, is normally removed by the kidneys. When the kidneys are not functioning well, blood urea nitrogen will accumulate in the body. The excess urea will be decomposed into ammonia under the effect of urea enzymes in gastrointestinal tract. Ammonia will be discharged through oral cavity to cause the bad odor. In addition, high BUN in saliva can also be decomposed into ammonia to make the symptom even worse. BUN running through pulmonary circulation to be discharged through respiration also contributes to the symptom.

How to relieve ammonia odor in Uremia?

Controlling your intake of proteins as prescribed by doctors and dietitians based on your condition is essential for controlling high BUN in blood and stopping the symptom from getting worse. At the meantime, start to make some small changes for oral health to make the symptom better. Rinse your mouth with a solution of one cup of water and one teaspoon of salt; after rising, spit out the solution. In addition, brush or scrape your tongue with a tongue cleaner. Because your tongue is directly posed to ammonia, scraping the layers will reduce or eliminate the symptom. As for reduction of high blood urea nitrogen, traditional Chinese medicine treatment may be a better option. Chinese herbs have known functions including expanding blood vessels, reducing blood stasis and accelerating blood circulation, so it may help to discharge elevated toxins and reduce ammonia odor. Clinical trials are on the way for researching treatment of Uremia by traditional Chinese medicine.