Understanding the Causes & Solutions for Bad Breath

We have all met someone having bad breath at one point in our lives. Given the vast number of people struggling with the issue, it’s no wonder store shelves are overflowing with mints, mouthwashes, gums, and other products designed to fight this condition. However, most of these products only provide a temporary solution since they don’t address the problem’s cause.

Halitosis, which is another name for bad breath, may cause low self-esteem in an individual.

Health Conditions Associated with Bad Breath

Poor oral hygiene is the most prominent cause of bad breath. However, in some cases, bad breath may be a result of another health complication. Examples include:

• Diseases such as metabolic disorders and some cancers can cause bad breath due to the chemicals they secrete. Chronic reflux of acids in the stomach can also be associated with halitosis
• Similarly, mouth infections such as gum disease may cause bad breath
• Surgical wounds can cause bad breaths after oral surgery, for instance, tooth extraction. Some medications can also indirectly induce halitosis. For instance, there are medications which when ingested into the body, are broken down, releasing chemicals responsible for causing bad breath.
• Another health condition that may lead to bad breath is xerostomia. This disease causes a decline in the secretion of saliva, which is responsible for cleaning your mouth and getting rid of particles that cause foul odors. Xerostomia naturally occurs during sleep resulting in “morning breath,” and the situation worsens if you sleep with an open mouth.
• Bad breath may also be caused by small stones that accumulate in the tonsils covered by bacteria that produce a terrible smell. Chronic swelling in the nose, throat, or sinuses or infections, which lead to postnasal drip, can also result in bad breath.

Home Remedies for Halitosis

Some of the remedies you may use at home to manage this condition include:

• Drinking plenty of water. Bacteria can easily develop if your mouth lacks the adequate moisture necessary to secrete saliva. Particular medication’s side effects, diseases, and medical conditions may deprive you of this essential moisture.

However, not drinking enough water may cause bad breath in perfectly healthy people. It’s essential to stay hydrated, more so after and before exercise.

• Another home remedy for bad breath is brushing your teeth at least twice daily. Maintaining high standards of oral hygiene is essential to combat and also avoid the condition. As per the American Dental Association (ADA), failure to brush your teeth allows food particles to remain in your mouth and, with time, decay, emitting a foul smell.
• Flossing is another way you can avoid having a case of bad breath. The American Dental Association recommends you floss once daily, at least, which is the road to good dental health. Dentists recommend flossing after every meal to reduce food particles, plaque, and bacteria responsible for bad breath.

Similarly, cleaning your tongue can help to get rid of harmful breath-causing compounds significantly. These compounds accumulate in your mouth and on your tongue, resulting from the combination of amino acids and bacteria, causing a sulfur-like irritating smell. Regularly cleaning your tongue, therefore, is vital in fighting lousy breath.

• Choose food that controls odor-causing bacteria and intestinal upset. You should moderate your sugar consumption and choose a diet that increases saliva flow like dark green and orange vegetables, whole grains, proteins, and fruits.
• Finally, it would help if you used a mouth rinse after each meal, which freshens your breath and reduces gingivitis and plaque. A mouth rinse is not enough to treat lousy breath but should follow after flossing and brushing your teeth.

Diagnosis

In case home remedies do not help with your bad breath, you should consider seeking professional help. A dentist will examine your condition and offer suggestions on treatment options best suitable for you. If you visit a Phoenix dentist for bad breath treatment, he/she will likely smell both the breath from your nose and the breath from your mouth and rate the odor on a plate.

In most cases, the back of the tongue is usually the primary source of the smell. If available, detectors can be used to point out the chemicals resulting in halitosis. Please book an appointment with us today at All Smiles Dental Care in Mesa, AZ, for more information about bad breath and ways of facilitating fresh breath.