What Could be Causing Sore Tongue?

What Causes Sore Tongue?

Sore tongue can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'worrying' to 'serious'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.

Diagnose your symptoms now!

let The Analyst™ find what's wrong
understand what's happening to your body
identify any nutritional deficiencies

Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose sore tongue, we could:

Research the topic
Find a doctor with the time
Use a diagnostic computer system.

The process is the same, whichever method is used.

Step 1: List all Possible Causes

We begin by identifying the disease conditions which have "sore tongue" as a symptom. Here are three possibilities:

Vitamin B12 Need
Vitamin B6 Need
Iron Need

Step 2: Build a Symptom Checklist

We then identify all possible symptoms and risk factors of each possible cause, and check the ones that apply:

brittle fingernails

shortness of breath when at rest

much vitamin C supplementation

copper supplementation

water retention before menstruation

possibly jaundiced skin

macrocytic red cells

carpal tunnel syndrome

long-term vegetarian/vegan diet

coffee consumption

numb/burning/tingling extremities

high sensitivity to bright light

... and more than 30 others

Step 3: Rule Out or Confirm each Possible Cause

A differential diagnosis of your symptoms and risk factors finds the likely cause of sore tongue:

Cause	Probability	Status
Vitamin B12 Need	91%	Confirm
Vitamin B6 Need	15%	Unlikely
Iron Need	3%	Ruled out

* This is a simple example to illustrate the process

Arriving at a Correct Diagnosis

The Analyst™ is our online diagnosis tool that learns all about you through a straightforward process of multi-level questioning, providing diagnosis at the end.

If you indicate mouth problems, The Analyst™ will ask further questions including this one:

During the past year, how often have you experienced a sore tongue? Only include surface soreness, not tongue muscle soreness.

Possible responses:

→ Not at all / don't know
→ Slight soreness a few times in the past year
→ Frequent slight soreness / occasionally severe
→ Frequent or constant severe soreness

Based on your response to this question, which may indicate slight tongue soreness, tongue soreness or severe tongue soreness, The Analyst™ will consider possibilities such as:

Iron Requirement

Vitamin B12 Requirement

Vitamin B6 Requirement

Concerned or curious about your health? Try The Analyst™