Sweet breath when I cry

December 12, 2007 9:49 AM

When I cry vigorously I get a sweet taste in my mouth. Why?
posted by kristymcj to health & fitness (8 comments total)

Mucous draining into your mouth?
posted by proj at 10:35 AM on December 12, 2007

This is a shot in the dark, but it's worth pointing out that, when you cry for emotional reasons, you are getting rid of excess chemicals (e.g. prolactin) which build up in your brain during times of stress. Your body is all of a piece - it may be reasonable to assume that the various chemicals you exude during a good cry are also vaporizing out of your mouth, just as water always does.

I myself have noticed that the breath of women I've been with have somehow seemed different during the moment of arousal, and I don't mean that in a "DURFLOL 'COZ I FILL 'EM UP WITH REBEL YELL" kind of way. Think about how pheromones make you smell differently during a period of arousal. I'm not a doctor, but that would be my theory!
posted by Sticherbeast at 10:35 AM on December 12, 2007 [2 favorites]

vaguely related data point- i dated a guy once who had anxiety problems and on any given day, i could gague his anxiety by the smell on his breath. bad anxiety = terrible breath. but when me and him were hanging out & the vibe was relaxed, his breath was fine. i guess it's opposite for you (crying = sweet), but to me it makes a lot of sense that your salivary & mucosal glands (and heck, maybe even tastebuds) would react to strong emotional states.
posted by twistofrhyme at 10:45 AM on December 12, 2007

twistofrhyme, couldn't that also be because anxiety -> dry mouth -> bad breath, rather than any sort of hormonal thing?

I'm guessing it's some physical thing regarding the OP's question, too, maybe mucus or tears.
posted by fiercecupcake at 10:56 AM on December 12, 2007

Just wanted to add that when I cry, particularly if it comes on suddenly, I get a very sharp, very overwhelming smell of ammonia in my nostrils. This has only been going on for the past year or so, and doesn't happen every single time, but something similar may be going on as is with you(though I have no idea what it is).

Or I could just have some jacked-up sinus infection or something.
posted by primalux at 11:16 AM on December 12, 2007

Snot is somewhat sweet and flows more (including down the back of your throat and into your moth) when you're crying.
posted by plinth at 11:23 AM on December 12, 2007

You may be tasting salt. In humans, the perception of sodium chloride is complex: at low concentrations, salt tastes sweet .
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 11:39 AM on December 12, 2007

The nasolacrimal duct connects the tear duct of the eye to the nasal cavity; from there it can drain back into the mouth. My guess is that you're just getting some tears on your tongue. In addition to salt, tears contain glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans that can have a sweet flavor.
posted by ikkyu2 at 11:22 PM on December 12, 2007