Why You Experience Bad Breath
Everyone experiences bad breathe from time to time. Bad breath accumulates when you eat strong odor food such as garlic and unions. It even occurs when you are NOT eating, hungry, or thirsty.
When you are hungry
Bad breath is more common in people who miss meals or are dieting. Chewing food increases saliva in the mouth. When you are not eating, saliva decreases and bacteria growth increases, causing bad breath.
When you are dehydrated
When you become dehydrated, you do not produce as much saliva. The reduced cleaning action of the saliva allows bacteria to grow, causing bad breath.
When you have poor oral hygiene
Bacteria and plaque buildup in the mouth care caused from food caught between teeth, dentures, or dental appliances. When you don’t brush often (at least twice a day) plaque and bacteria begins to build up. Stains or yellow teeth are also signs of bad oral hygiene.
The Medical Explanation of Bad Breath
Saliva is critical for sweeping away the food particles that would otherwise linger and collect bacteria. When you’re asleep, the level of saliva production in your mouth decreases, resulting in dry mouth. This allows bacteria to grow and produce volatile sulfur compounds causing the bad smell in your mouth.
Bad breath in the morning is mostly attributed to a lack of saliva production the night before. Most mouth breathers sleep with their mouth open, causing their mouth to get dryer and therefore letting breath-causing bacteria flourish.
Most mouth breathers sleep with their mouth open, causing their mouth to get dryer and therefore letting breath-causing bacteria flourish.
The cause of bad breath also stems from periodontal issues such as gingivitis and periodontitis. Poor oral hygiene can be damaging to your health as some people develop chronic diseases such as sinus infection leading to stomach infections and perhaps diabetes. To find out more information on periodontics and options for proper oral treatments.
How to Prevent Bad Breath
A pink shiny tongue indicates fresh breath, but if your tongue has a thick white film, it is likely that you have bad breath.
- Brushing the teeth and tongue can often get rid of bad breath, at least in the short term.
- Flossing and scraping your tongue before bed helps clean out the mouth and get rid of food particles so the bacteria have less “food” to munch on.
- Mouthwash may temporarily mask bad breath and can help with oral hygiene.
- Chewing sugarless gum or sucking on sugar-free mints may temporarily mask bad breath odor.
The above methods are not meant to replace a dentist visit. For more serious cases of bad breath, a dentist can prescribe special toothpaste and mouthwash that can improve the symptoms of bad breath. You can request your dentist to perform a quick, easy, and painless test of the bacteria in your mouth to determine if you have bad breath. If you have any specific questions, please refer to a periodontics specialist, periodontist, or your family dentist. Until then, stay fresh and keep smiling.
