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When I smell bad breath on someone, I immediately think of bad oral hygiene. But that's not right. Bad breath (medical term: halitosis) can be caused by a whole list of factors including some underlying medical condition.
All of us occasionally have bad breath (especially after a night of partying) but that's easily taken care of with a good brush and some flossing. However, when it's a chronic condition, it can become embarrassing and inhibiting.
Let's dig a bit deeper into this unsavory situation which we all want to avoid. Here, we'll discuss why we wake up in the morning with a smelly breath and some ways to fix this problem.
Most of the time, bad breath is caused by poor oral hygiene, but not always. Bad breath that doesn’t go away when you brush your teeth may be a sign of gum disease, which is caused by poor oral habits, or a disease elsewhere in your body. It's important to find the root cause of the problem because it might be a sign of something serious going on.
Poor oral hygiene is the most common cause of bad breath but there are many other causes as well. Let's look at them in more detail.
Also called gingivitis, gum disease is an inflammation of the gums. It’s caused by poor oral hygiene, specifically neglecting to brush and floss teeth regularly.
Gum disease causes redness, swelling, and bleeding of the gums. The culprit is plaque.
Plaque builds up on the teeth near the gum line but it's difficult to see. It only becomes visible when a lot of it is deposited on the gums and teeth. To see the plaque, you can rinse your mouth with a little food coloring in some water, which will temporarily stain the plaque and make it visible.
If not treated, gingivitis can result in periodontitis, which is a serious condition. Periodontitis can damage the soft tissue around teeth and the bone that supports the teeth, leading to tooth loss.
All tobacco products, including cigarettes, tobacco, chew, and cigars produce bad breath, leaving your mouth smelling like an ashtray. In addition, smoking and tobacco products damage gum tissue and cause gum disease, which can lead to bad breath.
Dry mouth means there is a shortness of saliva. It can be the result of any number of underlying factors such as aging, smoking, medication, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, dehydration, underactive salivary glands, or anxiety.
Amongst other functions, saliva helps to keep the mouth clean by washing away food particles. If food particles stay in the mouth too long, they can create an odor, resulting in bad breath.
With a lack of saliva comes bad breath. During the night when we sleep, saliva production decreases, which is why we wake up in the morning with a not-so-fresh breath.
These two organs are both responsible for filtering toxins out of the body. In thecase of liver or kidney disease, these functions can't be performed properly leading to bad breath, among other results. Kidney disease is known to cause sulfur-smelling breath.
Liver disease can cause a distinctive bad smell on the breath, called hepaticus.
Many medications, such as those for blood pressure, antihistamines, and antidepressants have side effects like dry mouth. When there is a lack of saliva in your mouth, bacteria can't be washed away and the result is bad breath.
In addition, some medications release chemicals in the bloodstream as they are metabolized in the body. These can reach your mouth and cause bad breath.
The gut is home to trillions of different types of bacteria, needed for healthy digestion. However, excessive bacteria in the small intestine can produce enormous amounts of rotten-smelling gas, which can cause belching.
The result isextremely bad-smelling breath. This condition is called small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO).
Bad breath can indeed be the result of digestive disorders but it isextremely rare since odors from the stomach are blocked by the esophagus, which is normally closed. Research has shown an association between bad breath and three digestive issues: GERD, Helicobacter Pylori, and giardiasis.
GERD is a digestive condition caused by acid reflux – that is when acid from the stomach flows back into the esophagus and throat. These acids have a sour smell which can affect the smell of your breath as well.
If you often get heartburn, the condition might affect your breath. Research has found that bad breath is often a symptom of GERD.
Helicobacter Pylori is a beneficial bacteria present in the digestive tract. When there is an overgrowth of H.pylori, various stomach problems can occur. When this happens it can result in rotten-smelling breath.
Research has found an association between H.pylori gastric infection and bad breath.
Different types of infections in the digestive system can potentially cause bad breath. The most common type of infection in the digestive tract is giardiasis. Giardiasis is caused by the parasite Giardia lamblia which can find its way into the human digestive system via food or water.
The infection can cause a foul-smelling belch resulting in bad breath.
The smell of one's breath is a very personal issue. If you suspect that your breath does not exactly smell rosy, you can confirm or disprove it in the following ways.
Practicing good dental hygiene is the obvious and most essential step towards a fresh-smelling mouth. After all, poor dental hygiene is themost common cause of bad breath.
Preventing cavities and plaque buildup by brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing once a day is the key to maintaining a healthy mouth that smells fresh.
Think of dental hygiene as cleaning three areas in the mouth:
Brushing prevents plaque buildup on the teeth and gums, flossing prevents it between teeth, and cleaning the tongue removes bacteria.
As mentioned earlier dry mouth is a common cause of bad breath. One of the functions of saliva is to wash the mouth clean. If there is too little saliva in your mouth, this can lead to bad breath.
Keep your mouth hydrated by taking a sip of water throughout the day. Drinking water will also encourage saliva production. Saliva helps to keep the teeth mineralized so they stay strong and resistant to decay, which may otherwise cause bad breath.
Green tea benefits oral health in several ways. Green teacontains compounds that boost oral health by decreasing dental caries and periodontal diseases - the two most common oral infections.
For example, polyphenols-containing green tea decreases sulfur compounds and oral bacteria that contribute to bad breath.
Parsley is recommended for bad breath caused by eating garlic but it can also be useful for bad breath in general. Parsley has a fresh but mild scent and is high in chlorophyll - which has deodorizing characteristics.
If you have ever attended a traditional Indian meal or eaten at a good Indian restaurant you will be familiar with the seeds offered to guests afterward. They are fennel seeds which serve as a mouth freshener. Fennel seeds contain various aromatic oils that help combat bad breath and indigestion.
Baking soda is known for its ability to absorb and neutralize odors. It has the ability to kill bacteria and has been shown tocombat bad breath when included as an ingredient in toothpaste.
You can buy a toothpaste that contains baking soda. Or, you can make your own baking soda mouthwash. Do this by dissolving 2 teaspoons of baking soda in 1 cup of warm water.
Yogurt has loads of health benefits. Containing trillions of healthy bacteria, it supports digestive health. The lactobacillus in yogurt helps fight bad bacteria in the digestive tract, promoting healthy breath.
Researchers who studied the effects of eating yogurt on breath odor found itreduces bad breath. They found that the levels of volatile sulfide compounds that cause bad breath decreased in about 80% of the volunteers after six weeks. They also had less plaque and fewer incidences of gingivitis.
Biting into a crisp apple has the effect of scrubbing away plaque and residue from the teeth. In addition, apples stimulate the production of saliva that helps kill bacteria that cause bad breath. On top of that, research has found that raw apples have a powerfulodor-cancelling effect.
Eating citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruits can combat bad breath in several ways. These fruits are high in vitamin C which promotes gum health. Chewing on a slice of citrus fruit stimulates saliva production, which helps to wash the mouth and remove odor-causing bacteria.
Fiber-rich fruits like apples and vegetables like carrots and celery can assist with bad breath by getting rid of food particles that remain in the mouth after eating.
Research that compared the effect of fiber in meals on bad breath found that those who consumed ahigh-fiber meal experienced a greater drop in bad breath levels than those who ate a low-fiber meal. The lower levels lasted for eight hours.
We all want to avoid the embarrassment of bad breath, so it's handy to know what foods to avoid in your quest ‘not to put people off with smelly breath’.
I'm sure you already know this, but the list will be incomplete without it.
Do you know why the garlic smell is so potent?
It's because the odor doesn't just come from your mouth. It also escapes from your lungs because garlic is absorbed into the bloodstream and travels to the lungs, where it enters your breath. The same applies to onions.
That’s because naturally occurring bacteria from your tongue feed on the amino acids in milk and cheeses, resulting in an odor that is foul and unattractive.
This interaction produces sulfur compounds, which smell terrible, giving you foul-smelling breath.
I could write about how and why canned fish gives one bad breath, but I think we all understand eating fish from a can won't result in a fresh-smelling breath. That fish sold in cans causes bad breath is a fact of life. If you eat fish from a can try to keep your distance for a while.
Bad breath is a common condition affecting many people across the globe. It's not always clear exactly how bad breath comes about, but in most cases, it has to do with poor dental hygiene that results in gum disease and periodontitis.
Bad breath can result from certain foods, dry mouth, medications, and smoking. A bad-smelling breath can also be an indication of an underlying disease such as liver or kidney disease.
The number one defense against bad breath is good oral hygiene. You can also rinse your mouth with homemade baking soda mouthwash. It works wonders!