But if you listen carefully... the next statement you hear the "experts" say should send up bright Red warning flags and clanging alarms! "We do not know the cause of geographic tongue and treatment does not permanently cure it".

Wait a minute what's that, you say? Throw some steroids at it and maybe it will go away, for a little while? Aren't steroids dangerous?

In addition to not curing the problem, steroid use can cause you many other problems! Some of them are much worse than the Geographic Tongue itself! You do not want to start using Steroids without having all the facts.

How steroids work-

Steroids work much like normal hormones in your body. They are basically a synthetic copy of the natural steroid, cortisol, which is produced by your adrenal glands. But, the naturally occurring version is regulated by the body... while the synthetic version is not.

Topical steroids can cause a great deal of side effects, many of which can be permanent.

Experts say "Side effects of steroids can occur when they are used for too long a length of time. Potent steroid side effects can be seen 2 weeks from starting treatment."

So according to this too long can be as little as 2 weeks!

Some of the side effects you can see are:

• Thin Skin
  A major effect of topical steroids is that it stops collagen being made. Collagen forms a mesh of fibers within the dermis giving the skin its strength and structure. Without collagen your skin gets thinner. (Imagine a tongue with thin skin, sounds a bit like the problem we are trying to cure!)
   

• Blood vessel effects
  They can cause small blood vessels in the skin to dilate, making them more obvious.
   

• Acne
  Acne can occur in the areas that are treated with steroids. This is reversible and can occur at any time after starting treatment.
   

• Tinea incognito
  If a fungus infection is treated with a steroid then the fungus can spread more quickly and become widespread. It is then known as incognito as it is difficult to recognize as a fungus infection. (unfortunately, many people with Geographic Tongues already have fungus problems, why would you risk making it worse?)
   

Other Problems associated with steroid use:

• Thrush
  This is a yeast based infection of the tongue causing white fuzzy patches on your tongue. This is a typical problem for people with Geographic Tongue and taking steroids only makes it harder to cure!
   

• Skin Problems
   including rough skin and severe acne. Geographic Tongue is already a "skin problem" often present in people with eczema, do you really want more skin problems?
   

• Baldness
  Steroids tend to speed up the balding process, you already have a "bald tongue" why would you want a bald head too?
   

• Psychological problems
  Long term steroid use has been known to cause many psychological problems including "roid rage" and  depression. Geographic Tongue is depressing enough without taking drugs to make you more depressed!

Among males it can also result in "feminization", which includes the increased tendency toward fatty deposits, extremely soft muscles, lowered sperm count, and the development of breasts.

Among females it can result in "masculinization" which includes deepening of the voice, thinning of the hair, baldness, anxiety, depression, and increased aggression.

Also associated with Steroid use:

• Increased risk of heart disease

• rapid weight increase

• hormonal imbalances

• growth defects

• headaches

• kidney problems

• liver problems

• Impotence

• High blood pressure

• Stomach aches (including nausea, diarrhea and vomiting)

That's quite a list of potential problems! But that's not all... How about: immune system dependency resulting in:

• Tiredness,

• Being run down

• More prone to viral infections, including pneumonia.

Plus if all these problems were not enough... based on my experience taking steroids may actually make the underlying problem of Geographic Tongue worse! (although it masks the symptoms making it look better... temporarily).

According to nutritional experts topical oral steroids can cause deficiencies in the following vitamins:

• Calcium

• Chromium

• Magnesium

• Melatonin

• Potassium

• Selenium

• Vitamin B6

• Vitamin D

In addition, taking Alcohol or Sodium with these steroids can be "DANGEROUS". OK, so maybe you can avoid alcohol (no more mouthwash or cold medicine either!) but Sodium? No potato chips, popcorn etc? I don't think I could survive!

And finally there are a few other things that may cause problems. Some of them probably won't be a problem for you like taking the herbs, Alder buckthorn or Buckthorn. But others might be an issue... like Diuretic herbs and Laxative herbs which you may take without even knowing it if you take diet supplements or herbal teas.

Do you drink Grapefruit juice? What about Licorice? Protein? Vitamin A? Vitamin C? Vitamin K? or Zinc?

How can you live without protein? And Vitamin C is in all types of fruit! So lets see... you can take this stuff (steroids) and your tongue symptoms may get better for a while, but then you can't eat protein, fruit, potato chips, popcorn, take vitamins, herbs or even eat grapefruit ...

I don't know about you... But somehow this doesn't sound like a very good solution to me!

Plus based on my research reducing your exposure to some of these vitamins might be exactly the opposite of what you need to do to really cure the problem! (not just mask the symptoms).

Which do you prefer... a safe natural cure or a risky chemical that masks the symptoms and could be dangerous unless you stop eating almost everything?

If your tongue looks like one of these there is a better solution!

Mild Geographic Tongue or Glossitis	Typical Geographic Tongue	Severe Geographic Tongue with Fissures

Click Here to see How others (Like Jon and Dorothy) cured their Geographic Tongue problems safely and naturally.