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The Bad Breath Misconceptions That Stop You

October 3rd, 2008    Subscribe To Our Feed

Bad Breath Causes

Treatment for bad breath are many and may vary widely, depending on the cause and the preference of the person affected. There are many things that people have always accepted to be true about bad breath, but some of these, such as the following, are not really true.

1. You can find out if you have bad breath by exhaling over your cupped hand. True and false. It is possible to determine the presence of bad breath by using this technique. However, it may only work if your halitosis is so severe, or if you have a very sensitive sense of smell. The truth is that identifying your own bad breath is very hard because your nose is actually connected to your mouth. As such, many internal odors may be screened, including that of bad breath.

If you seriously think that you might have bad breath, you can confirm the situation by any of these methods. First, you can go to the dentist and ask to be checked with the halimeter, a dental instrument specifically used to diagnose halitosis. Second, you can ask a trusty friend to simply tell you. But the easiest way to check for bad breath is by scraping the innermost part of your tongue with a teaspoon or a cotton swab. After a minute, hold the spoon or swab to your nose and get a whiff. Whatever smell you get, that is exactly how others feel about your breath.

2. Bad breath comes from the intestines. True and false, but mostly false. While bad breath can come from digestive disorders, it is more commonly a result of leftover food particles stuck in the crevices of your mouth due to irregular brushing and failure to floss everyday.

3. Bad breath can be avoided by brushing and flossing regularly. True. This is a very simple yet very effective way to get rid of bad breath or avoid getting it in the first place. Ideally, you should brush your teeth after every meal, including snacks, to clear your mouth of excess food particles every time you eat, but two or three times a day is sufficient, according to most dentists. Flossing must be done daily. In addition to these common dental practices, it is also vital that you clean your tongue after brushing to prevent bacteria from accumulating, which can eventually lead to bad breath.

4. Bad breath can be eliminated by using a mouthwash. False. According to most advertisements, you will have fresh breath just by using a mouthwash. Unfortunately, these dental products only give a temporary solution to your halitosis problem. Some of them can even aggravate the problem in the long run. If you want to completely eliminate the problem of bad breath, you should practice good dental hygiene, eat foods rich in fiber and drink plenty of water everyday.

Mouthwashes can be used as a temporary breath freshener in situations where it’s not practical to brush your teeth right away. But even in these circumstances, you should avoid those that have some kind of alcohol among their ingredients. These products cause dry mouth, which then encourages the growth of oral bacteria that produces that nasty odor that we know as bad breath.

When purchasing a mouthwash, you can consider the products that contain chlorine dioxide. These will not dry up your mouth and are very effective in masking the foul odor released by certain oral bacteria, at least on a short term basis.

Among the mouth washes, ProFresh Oral Rinse, has been tested to be more effective than others in this regard. The manufacturers of this dental product actually claim that their mouthwash is unique because it is the only one that actually contains chlorine dioxide that can counter the putrid smell released by oral bacteria. According to press releases from the company, other mouthwashes that claim to have chlorine dioxide actually has only sodium chlorite which is not that effective against bad breath.

5. Eating certain foods can give you bad breath. True and false. Once more, this depends on several other factors. For instance, we all know that eating onions or garlic can leave a nasty smell in the mouth that some people might call bad breath. However, this is only a temporary odor and is not really the same as having halitosis. The same goes for sulfur-rich foods like cabbage. In these cases, you might have bad breath after your meal but it will fade quickly especially if you brush your teeth immediately after eating.

However, if your bad breath is persistent and doesn’t go away, you might want to consider reducing your intake of foods that are rich in sulfur. If you regularly eat these foods, don’t be surprised to find sulfur in your digestive system. The strong stench of this chemical will come out in your breath every time you open your mouth.

But this happens very rarely. The more common cause of bad breath is still the lack of proper oral hygiene. To decrease your chances of getting bad breath, you must always be conscious of your mouth’s cleanliness. Take the time to brush your teeth at least twice a day, floss daily, clean your tongue properly and avoid sulfur-rich foods. This way, you can avoid getting bad breath in the first place.

Dummies Guide To Bad Breath Causes and Cures

October 1st, 2008    Subscribe To Our Feed

Bad Breath

Bad breath (halitosis) is a common for many people and can be rather embarrassing.  Bad breath can be a big turn off for those around you and if it is a condition that you suffer from long term you may notice that people may stand back from you when talking to you.

There are many causes of bad breath with some being chronic conditions and others being short term causes. In this article we will discuss the causes of bad breath as well as the cures.

Causes of Bad Breath
One of the very common but reasonably short term causes of bad breath is eating foods that cause bad breath with the main food being garlic.  Garlic will even carry on causing bad breath for a while even after there is no trace of the garlic left in the mouth.  This is because the active ingredients are absorbed into the blood stream and are then expelled by the lungs as you breathe.

Brushing and flossing can disguise the smell a little but as long as the odour continues to be expelled as you breathe there will still be a certain amount of bad breath.  The good thing with ‘garlic breath’ is that it will fade of and your breath will return to normal usually within a few hours.

Smoking is another substance that will cause bad breath by both the taste left in the mouth as well as the expelled odour from the lungs. Smoking also affects oral hygiene and encourages gum disease which can also be a big contributing factor to bad breath.  The obvious and only way to stop bad breath caused by smoking is to give up smoking.

The most common cause of chronic bad breath is usually plaque build up which can cause small pockets to appear between the teeth and gums.  These pockets then fill up with food particles and bacteria.  Normal brushing and even flossing will not be able to clean these pockets completely and it needs to be done by a dental hygienist.

One of the main causes of bad breath is dry mouth.  Dry mouth can be caused by allergies and can also be caused by some medications such as asthma and bronchitis inhalers.  These medications can have an impact on your saliva production and actually a reduction in the amount saliva produced.  This causes your mouth to become dry and as a result there is less oxygen present which makes ideal conditions for bacteria to thrive.  The build up of bacteria in the mouth and on the tongue is what causes the bad breath.

Another cause of bad breath is post-nasal drip which can be as a result of an allergy.  Post-nasal drip is caused by excessive mucus being produced by the sinuses which is a common reaction to allergy.  This mucus is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria growth and the bacteria will feed off this condition which will result in bad breath.  This cause will usually be accompanied by a bad taste in your mouth.

The final cause of bad breath is a possible allergy to certain foods. Food intolerance can have many different symptoms and one common symptom is the production of excess gas in the stomach.  This gas can often reflux back up and settle in the mouth causing bad breath.

In some cases bad breath can be caused by a more serious underlying condition so if the usual bad breath remedies don’t get rid of the problem then you may need to visit your doctor.

Cures for Bad Breath
There are many cures and remedies for bad breath but to get the best result it is best to try and identify the cause of the bad breath.  By attacking the cause will give you the best results.

Here are some cures that you can try for bad breath:

The first thing to do is make sure you have a good oral hygiene routine.  Brush your teeth and tongue twice a day and floss once a day. Research has shown that people that floss do have better breath than people who don’t floss.  Flossing will help to remove trapped food particles and prevent them from becoming a breeding ground for bacteria.

If you have dry mouth you may be able to get an artificial saliva substitute from your dentist.  If you have an allergy that is causing your dry mouth then it would pay to try to identify your allergen and work on avoiding that allergen.

Visit a dental hygienist regularly for a professional clean.  You should have this done every six months to make sure of no plaque build up between teeth.

Minimize the food supply for bacteria. The bacteria that cause bad breath thrive on protein rich foods. Vegetarians who eat less protein foods have much less problems with bad breath.

Using mouthwashes too often can not always be that good for you as they contain chemicals, however you can use a mouthwash of baking soda dissolved in water daily without any risk.  This is a natural remedy and is very safe to use daily and can help to keep the tongue clean and free from bacteria.  Squeezed lemon into water can also be used daily as a gargle and will prevent bad breath from reoccurring.

Adding yogurt to your diet on a regular basis, preferably daily, can help to cure bad breath and prevent it reoccurring.  Yogurt contains good bacteria and has a very good overall benefit for your health.

Foods rich in zinc can also help to keep bacteria under control and prevent bad breath.

All of these remedies are very good so if you have no luck with them there could be another cause that you will need to see your doctor to get diagnosed so that you can take the necessary steps to heal yourself and heal your bad breath.

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