One in 3 people suffer from bad breath, or Halitosis.
This is an embarrassing problem but it can have some simple remedies, once the cause of the problem is resolved.
Commonly, most of the causes stem from the mouth or mouth area.
In this article I will outline the seven most common causes, and then the remedies, of bad breath.
1.
Food particles: Food that is left between the teeth and on the surface of the tongue will be a major cause of this problem for a few reasons, but mostly because the bacteria in the mouth feed on these food particles, and they will produce waste which causes a bad smell.
2.
Tooth Decay: Decaying teeth are also a large cause.
The decay and the bacteria that are produced from it will cause a foul smell.
3.
Dry mouth (Xerostomia): Saliva is produced by the mouth and act as a natural way for the mouth to flush away any waste as well as acting in an anti-bacterial fashion.
When saliva production is decreased (commonly when we sleep we don't produce as much saliva, or when we are de-hydrated) bacteria builds up in the mouth.
As well, there is a build up of plaque which favours the growth of odour producing organisms.
4.
Gum Diseases: Gum disease is a result of bacteria living in areas that are are not accessible by toothbrushes and will cause halitosis.
5.
Smoking: Nicotine, tar and other foul smelling substances in mouth as a result of smoking cause the very recognisable smokers breath.
6.
Severe Dieting: Prolonged starvation can cause a fouled breath caused by ketoacidosis.
7.
Diet: What we eat can play an important role in how our breath can smell.
Food such as garlic and onion are well known for not being good for the breath, however it is less known that proteins can play a part in the production of bad breath for a couple of reason including the fact that bacteria feed on protein and secondly that some people are allergic to proteins and this allergy can produce a bad mouth odour.
Now that we have examined the causes of bad breath, lets now turn to some remedies: Brush your teeth after each meal.
Use baking soda first to kill bacteria, then finish with toothpaste.
After every meal and morning and night is a good idea.
Also, brush your tongue.
There is a correlation between the tongue and horrid smelling breath.
Don't miss out cleaning the tongue.
Tooth decay is bad for a number of reasons.
Make sure that you have your mouth and gums regularly checked.
Make sure that you drink as much water as possible everyday to stay hydrated and to stop dry mouth.
Chewing sugar free gum is good too for saliva production.
Don't smoke.
The health benefits are obvious, as well as the benefits for your breath.
Using mouthwash only hides the bad smell, for 10 minutes at the most! It may flush out food particles from the mouth but a better remedy is flushing with water.
Bad breath can happen when you are hungry, but will soon disappear when you eat something.
There are a lot more bad breath causes and remedies than what I have outlined here, however by following this simple principles you too can have a fresh smelling breath!