Why does it seem like saliva gets extra sticky after a run?

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Why does it seem like saliva gets extra sticky after a run?

In: Biology

Anonymous 0 Comments

It mostly has to do with your body losing water. Saliva (and blood, and other fluids) are mostly water, with various compounds dissolved in it. It’s the proteins in saliva that make it more slippery than pure water (rub some between your fingers).

When you exercise, you raise your body temperature, breathe harder, and sweat. These make you lose water (do it enough, and you can see the difference in your weight). The water comes from your blood and other fluids, leaving them with greater concentrations of the other things dissolved in them (“solutes”). High-concentration saliva is stickier, as you can also observe by taking some and letting it partly dry.