Black Hairy Tongue

Black hairy tongue is a temporary, harmless and fairly common condition in which the top of your tongue looks hairy. However, the substance on your tongue isn’t really hair and it’s not always black — it can be brown, green, white or other colors.

Little bumps on the top of your tongue — called filiform papillae — grow and collect food, bacteria and dead skin cells, which provide the color. The papillae are usually about 1 millimeter (1/32 inch) long and they’re supposed to fall off, like a layer of skin being shed, before they grow. This shedding process is called desquamation. If the papillae don’t fall off, they can grow as long as 18 millimeters (3/4 inch).

How common is black hairy tongue?

Black hairy tongue affects about 13 % of people at some point in their lives, according to the American Academy of Oral Medicine. It happens in all population groups, but is more common in men and in people over the age of 65.