Chewing gum and a saliva substitute alleviate thirst and xerostomia in patients on haemodialysis

Background. Most patients on haemodialysis (HD) have to maintain a fluid-restricted diet to prevent a high interdialytic weight gain (IWG). The prevalence of xerostomia (the feeling of a dry mouth) is higher in HD patients than in controls. Recently, we demonstrated that xerostomia and thirst were positively correlated with IWG in HD patients. Thus, this may play a role as a stimulus for fluid intake between dialysis sessions. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of chewing gum or a saliva substitute on xerostomia, thirst and IWG.