No More Halitosis!

9 Reasons Your Breath May Smell

You’re on your way to an important meeting and you realize – your breath is horrible, and you have no time to do anything about it. You have no breath mints, no gum … and no chance of keeping the smell to yourself.

Bad breath can make a really bad impression, but once you understand what’s behind it, you can easily control your halitosis.

The Main Culprits Behind Halitosis:

1. Food. Yes, what you eat can cause your breath to smell. Of course, when you think of food and bad breath, you’re most likely to think of the common breath killers, like onions and garlic. These particular vegetables actually metabolize in a way that not only causes their smell to linger in your mouth, their odor is also secreted through your sweat. But onions and garlic aren’t the only causes of bad breath. Many other vegetables cause bad breath, as do dairy products, which create much more mucus in the mouth and throat. Snacking on a little cheese during happy hour may not be the best idea. Even chocolate can cause halitosis.

2. The breakdown of food in your mouth. As you eat, tiny particles of food become lodged between your teeth and below your gums. These bits of food cause a foul smell as they break down.

3. Beverages. As earlier discussed, dairy causes excess mucus, so dairy drinks can easily cause bad breath that doesn’t quickly dissipate. Sugary drinks cause the bacteria known to cause bad breath to flood the mouth. Bad-breath causing bacteria love to snack on sugar.

4. Dry Mouth. Some people have chronic dry mouth for no known reason. Others suffer from dry mouth as a side-effect of medications they take. Still others may suffer dry mouth from consuming alcohol, or consistently using alcohol-based mouth rinses.

5. Poor oral health. Teeth and gums that are not healthy can emit foul odors. For instance, those with periodontal disease often have strong-smelling breath, and cavities can also cause breath to smell.

6. Health issues. Many health problems can cause bad breath. Those with diabetes may have fruity smelling breath, or breath that smells like markers, if their diabetes is not under control. Those with kidney problems may have fishy smelling breath. And those with acid reflux often have halitosis as well.

7. Illnesses involving the sinus or throat. Whether it’s post-nasal drip caused by the common cold or by nasal allergies, those with upper respiratory illnesses often have bad breath. In fact, doctors can often recognize sinus infections or strep throat based solely on the patient’s breath.

8. Use of tobacco. Smokers and those who chew tobacco have distinctive-smelling bad breath. The more one smokes or chews, the worse the breath can smell.

9. Poor oral care. Some people are prone to skipping the step of brushing their teeth twice daily, and the American Dental Association estimates that up to 80% of individuals don’t floss daily. Brushing teeth properly helps remove unhealthy bacteria from the teeth and gums, which significantly reduces the incidence of bad breath. But even if you brush twice daily like clockwork but skip flossing, you could be leaving your mouth wide open to the effects of halitosis. Flossing teeth significantly helps remove both food and bacteria lodged between teeth in places a toothbrush cannot. It also releases bacteria from below the gum line, not only reducing the likelihood of bad breath, but also significantly reducing the risk of periodontal disease.

Curbing Bad Breath At the Source

Sometimes it’s overwhelming to think of all the ways we can create halitosis. Thankfully, there is one simple way to help reduce halitosis – even morning breath! By altering the bacterial composition of your mouth, you can help crowd out bad-breath causing bacteria. A simple probiotic mint, filled with the beneficial bacteria known to reduce the colonies of harmful, bad-breath causing bacteria, can help control halitosis, regardless of its cause.

Remember, first impressions are lasting impressions. Leave your halitosis fears behind.