In what appeared to be a slip of the tongue, Saturday Night Live alumna Kate McKinnon recently revealed in an interview that she has an odd but harmless medical condition called “geographic tongue.” “Your tongue sheds in patches and looks like an atlas, hence the name ‘geographic tongue,’” said McKinnon. The 41-year-old went on to explain that she considers it “gross.” The Cleveland Clinic estimates that 3% of people worldwide have the condition, known scientifically as “benign migratory glossitis.” Small bumps called papillae cover the tongue, helping to grip food for chewing and swallowing and housing the taste buds. These thread-like, cone-shaped structures are on the front two-thirds of the tongue. Geographic tongue is the loss of normal papillae, resulting in irregular “islands” surrounded by white or gray borders. These patches can change shape and size, disappearing and reappearing at any time and place on the tongue. The exact cause of geographic tongue isn’t know, though it’s considered an inflammatory condition and tends to run in families. It’s also more common in women, young adults, and those suffering from allergies, eczema, psoriasis, Type 1 diabetes, stress, and nutritional deficiencies. Experts recommend seeing a dentist if symptoms persist for more than 10 days.
