Oral health is the purview of a dentist, just as much as the maintenance of dental health is. One major component of the oral cavity is the tongue.

Did you know that the human tongue has up to 10,000 tastebuds?

It is essential for:

• Speaking
• Tasting
• Chewing
• Swallowing
• Digesting

Here are some fun, interesting, and surprising facts about your tongue…

15 Fun Facts About the Tongue

1. The average human tongue is 7.5cm long. Its base lies in the very back of the mouth, just in front of the epiglottis. Males usually have longer tongues than females.

2. The tongue is made of muscle – specifically, eight different intertwining muscles that create an incredibly flexible matrix. The tongue muscles are also the only muscles in the entire body that work completely independently of the bony skeleton.

3. Contrary to common belief, the tongue is not the strongest muscle in the body. This honour belongs to the masseters, which lie on each side of the jaw and lifts the lower jaw. The heart is also an arguably stronger muscle.

4. The tongue works constantly, even during sleep, pushing saliva down into the throat.

5. Tongue prints are as individual as fingerprints – and even identical twins have their own unique tongue prints.

6. Most people have between 2000-4000 tastebuds, but some have up to 10,000. There are also tastebuds located in the back of the throat, the sinuses, and the upper oesophagus. Babies and small children also have tastebuds on their lips and inner cheeks. These can’t be seen with the naked eye – the small bumps on the tongue are, rather, papillae. The tastebuds sit on top of these.

7. The tastebuds evolved for survival – enabling a warning system for bitter or sour tastes that indicate a substance may be toxic or spoiled. They respond to salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami/savoury flavours. The food must be moistened by saliva for it to be tasted – and salty flavours are usually tasted first.

8. 25% of people are “super-tasters” – they have a much stronger sense of taste, especially for bitter foods. Another 255 are “non-tasters” – they can’t taste a certain bitter compound at all.

9. The tongue is responsible for most cases of snoring. It can also get fat, correlating with obesity levels elsewhere in the body, and increased fat volume in the tongue can result in obstructive sleep apnoea.

10. 80% of people can curl their tongue into a tube. Fewer than 15% can curl their tongue into a cloverleaf pattern.

11. A giraffe’s tongue is as long as 2 feet (approximately 60cm).  

12. A Blue whale’s tongue weighs more than 2.5 tonnes.

13. Tibetans poke their tongues out as a form of greeting!

14. A healthy tongue is pink and textured. The tongue can indicate certain health conditions – from vitamin deficiencies to bacteria associated with diabetes, yeast infections, blood irregularities, and oral cancers.

15. A routine dental check-up should include an oral health check and examination of the tongue.

Adam Dental Supplies is a top Australian distributor of oral health and dental supplies in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and across Australia. Within our huge catalogue of products is a range of clinic and consumer supplies relating to the tongue and general oral health – including but not limited to:

• Tongue depressors
• Cheek retractors with tongue guards
• Tongue and cheek absorbent pads
• Disposable tongue blocks
• Tongue guards
• Mouth rinses
• Toothbrushes
• Toothpaste
• Tongue cleaners and toothpicks
• Gums and mints

Browse our catalogue today or get in touch with us here.