Health Advice

Oral thrush is usually harmless. It's common in babies and older people with dentures. It can be easily treated with medicines bought from a pharmacy.

Check if it's oral thrush

Adults

Other symptoms in adults are:

• cracks at the corners of the mouth
• not tasting things properly
• an unpleasant taste in the mouth
• pain inside the mouth (for example, a sore tongue or sore gums)
• difficulty eating and drinking

Oral thrush in adults is not contagious.

Babies

Babies with oral thrush may not want to feed.

Babies can pass oral thrush on through breastfeeding. This can cause nipple thrush in mothers.

If you're not sure it's oral thrush

Look at other causes of a white or sore tongue.

A pharmacist can help with oral thrush

Oral thrush can be easily treated with a mouth gel bought from a pharmacy. The gel is suitable for adults, children and babies over the age of 4 months.

Ask your pharmacist for advice. Always follow the instructions on the medicine packet.

If you leave oral thrush untreated, the infection can spread to other parts of the body.

See a GP if:

How you can prevent oral thrush

Oral thrush is an infection caused by a fungus called Candida. Some things can make the fungus grow more than usual.

You might get thrush if you're:

• taking antibiotics over a long time
• using asthma inhalers
• having cancer treatment like chemotherapy

There are some things you can do to help prevent oral thrush.