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[B78]Bad Breath And Causes

by Julian Wayne, Jul

Having bad breath can change your life for the worse, both personally and professionally. And the grim truth is people most often won't tell you; they'll just gossip and snicker behind your back. There's no doubt about it - bad breath is bad news. However, there is a way to handle this issue. But the first thing you must do is discover the root cause of this problem.

The Most Common Causes of Bad Breath

Do you suffer from "morning breath"? Many people who suffer from bad breath have discovered that the morning is the worst time for them. If you're one of these people then you wake up with a foul odor emanating from your mouth that subsides after the morning brushing of your teeth. But as the days wears on, that smell slowly crawls back into your mouth and people are once again avoiding you like you have the plague.

Occasionally the cause of bad breath could be due to what you ingest or put in your mouth. We all know what someone's breath smells like after they've eaten a meal that included garlic or onions. Pungent food is a classic cause of foul breath. And so is smoking. If you just love cigars or can't go a day without taking a puff of your favorite brand of cigarette, this will cause bad breath for sure. And let's not forget everyone's favorite vice - alcohol. Beverages containing alcohol are well known to cause unpleasant breath.

Masking Won't Help in the Worst Cases

People often try to cover up their bad breath by using various fresheners. These often take the form of gums, mints and sprays. These fresheners can cover up the odor for several minutes or maybe an hour. If the smell was caused by something you ate, then this tactic might work since the foul breath is only temporary to begin with. But if the chief cause is more serious such as poor oral hygiene, the fresheners will only mask the problem and not eliminate it. The terrible breath will only return.

Chronic bad breath is known as halitosis. If your breath is bad all the time, regardless of what you eat or drink, then your problem is indeed chronic. Many times this is caused by bacteria living in your mouth. The best way to get rid of it is by careful brushing and flossing. And don't think for a moment mouthwash can take the place of flossing. As long as food particles are left in your mouth, bacteria can act on them to decay your teeth and give you bad breath. No mouthwash in the world can "neutralize" those food particles...only flossing can remove them. When choosing toothpaste, look for those than contain baking soda and peroxide as their main ingredients.

Bad breath can be conquered, but not by ignoring the problem. First, recognize you have a problem then set out to beat it. You'll feel confident and be more confident around people.

Bad Breath is usually caused by the breakdown of proteins by bacteria somewhere in the mouth. Bad breath is not contagious, meaning you cannot catch it from someone else. Chronic bad breath, known as Halitosis, does not come from the stomach. The only odor that comes from the stomach is when you burp. Food eaten such as garlic and spicy foods once absorbed into the body can release odor through the lungs when you breathe. Food odors are transitory and should not be confused with bad breath. Human's sense of smell has the ability to adjust to odor.

Symptoms of Bad Breath

Poor dental hygiene - Teeth are coated with film or plaque. You may have food trapped between the teeth and pale or swollen gums.

Infections in the mouth - Symptoms depend on the type of infection. They can include:

Red or swollen gums that may bleed easily, especially after brushing or flossing
Pus between teeth or a pocket of pus (abscess) at the base of a tooth

People who have periodontitis often experience bad breath because of bacteria accumulating in areas that are not cleaned easily, such as deep pockets around teeth.

Fortunately, treatment is very effective for people who have bad breath of mouth origin.

Why Do Poor Habits Cause Bad Breath?

If you don't brush and floss your teeth daily, food particles can remain in your mouth, which promotes bacteria growth between teeth, around the gums, and on the tongue. This causes bad breath. In addition, odor-causing bacteria and food particles can cause bad breath if dentures are not properly cleaned.

Medical causes

Medical causes of bad breath are rare (about 10%), but they can occur. If you have a throat or tonsil infection, the catarrh that is produced can cause bad breath.

Preventing Smelly Breath

So what's a kid to do? Don't smoke or use tobacco products, of course. And take care of your mouth by brushing your teeth at least twice a day and flossing once a day. Brush your tongue, too, because bacteria can grow there. Flossing once a day helps get rid of particles wedged between your teeth. Also, visit your dentist twice a year for regular checkups and cleanings.

Treatment of Bad Breath

When saliva production diminishes, keep the mouth wet with a liberal intake of water. Experts advise drinking eight glasses of water a day for basic metabolic function, and it seems that keeping the mouth moist is a good way of keeping the bacterial flora of the mouth under control. Hold the water in the mouth as long as possible-minimum of twenty seconds, and swish it around to loosen food particles and other bits of debris that bacteria feed upon. The longer the water remains in the mouth the better.

The tongue scrapper much be somewhat flexible to follow the contours of the tongue yet rippled, ridges or "rake-like" in profile to do a proper job. Several passes of this instrument scarped lightly over the tongue twice a day will effectively remove the majority of evil-smelling debris, food, and bacterial residue.

Article Source : How To Tell Someone They Have Bad Breath

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Both Julian Wayne & samnickel6 are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

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