So I’m really parched, haven’t drank in a while, driving home, munching on cheeseburgers. Since my throat was really dry, the burger got stuck in the esopaghus (giving that “ow, my chest is choking” feeling. Immeadiately, my salivary glands went into super overdrive to give me some moisture down there.
I thought it was an interesting reflex. And I assume it is, indeed, a reflex… but I was thinking about it.
It seems like I can generate a lot of saliva for a short period of time simply by concentrating on it. Is this a case semivoluntary (like the lungs) muscles?
If they were volunary, one could have perfect control over them. Can you “hold your saliva” like you can hold your breath (i.e. not salivate at all)? I can’t.
The salivary glands are sacs lined with myoepithelial cells, which are muscle like cells. These involuntarily contract with certain stimuli, like food. The salivary glands are constantly producing saliva, though, and don’t need myoepithelial cell contraction in order to eject it. This happens constantly, which keeps your mouth wet. Since the sacs are usually full and refill quite quickly, one can milk the duct with the tongue, for instance running your tongue along the floor of your mouth milks the sublingual glands.
I can squirt saliva about 5 feet out of my mouth from the gland under my tongue - looks like a snake squirting venom. I’ve been able to do this since I was a child.
jjimm, you would have been quite popular in my junior high school. Back then, we referred to the practice as gleeking. There were several kids who were good at it.
I don’t think that you can voluntarily stop saliva production, but you can voluntarily stimulate it. Oh, yeah, chicks do dig it. :rolleyes:
We called it gleeting, and I am very good at it. I spent my sophomore year in highschool perfecting my skills of accuracy and distance, and at 38 still use it varying effect. Girls are no longer so keen on it, though straight guys tend to get a kick out of it no matter what their age.