Saliva is an essential bodily fluid produced in the mouth, playing a crucial role in oral health and digestive processes. It contains vital components such as water, sodium, chloride, calcium, potassium, bicarbonate, immunoglobulin A, albumin, ptyalin (amylase), and mucin. Its functions include maintaining oral moisture, lubricating food for easier swallowing, dissolving food molecules to facilitate taste perception, aiding speech by enabling free movement of the tongue and lips, and continuously cleansing teeth and the oral cavity.
Saliva is secreted by salivary glands. These glands are broadly categorized into minor and major types. Minor salivary glands, numbering between 400 and 600, are distributed across the mucosa of the oral cavity, nose, sinuses, pharynx, larynx, trachea, and bronchi. The major salivary glands consist of six principal glands, connected to the oral cavity via small ducts, located on each side of the face: two parotid glands (one in front of each ear), two submandibular glands (one under each jaw), and two sublingual glands (one under each side of the tongue).