Mouth ulcers are common ailments that affect almost every one of us at some point in our lives. The sores can appear on any of the soft tissues in the mouth, including the lips, cheeks, gums, tongue, and on the floor and roof of the mouth. The sores may even develop in the mouth on the esophagus — the tubes that lead to the stomach.

Mouth ulcers, including canker sores, are usually mildly irritating and last only a week or two. Sometimes, they may indicate oral cancer or a viral infection, such as herpes simplex.

There are different types of mouth sores. They can occur anywhere in the mouth including bottom of the mouth, inner cheeks, gums, lips, and tongue.

Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex virus

Canker sores look like a pale or yellow ulcer with a red outer ring

Less commonly, mouth ulcers can be a sign of illness, such as an autoimmune disorder, a tumor, an infection, a weakened immune system, or a reaction to a drug. Most causes of mouth ulcers are anemia, vitamin deficiency, especially the B complex, folic acid deficiency, gum infections, poor oral health, oral thrush, smoking, celiac disease, or oral cancer.

According to Ayurveda, mouth ulcers result from imbalanced Pitta dosha. Digestive problems are the main reasons for mouth sores and typically happen along with other Pitta imbalances, like gastric or duodenal ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, infections.