Bad breath - symptoms, causes, remedies and treatments

Bad breath is a foul or strong-smelling odor that can be smelled coming from the mouth of the person who has bad breath. If bad breath is a real concern for you or someone you know, I would strongly recommend to download the free e-book, Bad Breath Bible. You won't believe the amount of information and suggestions that will help prevent and cure bad breath once and for all. I have personally downloaded this e-book some time ago, and it truly is a bible of bad breath knowledge and facts! A real eye opener for sure.

Before you can even begin to treat this problem, you need to understand what it is and what causes it. The only way to prevent, fight and stop bad breath for good is to eliminate most or all products and foods that will trigger the little "breath demons" under your tongue and in your throat, where the problem starts and lives.

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What is halitosis?

Halitosis is a fancy medical term to describe bad breath. Many use halitosis when referring to chronic bad breath, others use halitosis when an illness or disease is the cause of bad breath such as diabetes, but basically, halitosis and bad breath mean the exact same thing. One term is no more chronic or serious than the other. Halitosis IS bad breath and vice versa.

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Who has bad breath?

The majority of the population will have bad breath problems at one time or another. In fact most people do have offensive breath, they just don't know it. For many people, bad breath is a chronic disease, often referred to as halitosis. Unfortunately, those who do have bad breath don't know it, don't realize it and, therefore, don't do anything about it. It's quite embarrassing to tell someone that their breath is not as fresh as it could be. It's even more embarrassing when you're the one who has the problem.

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What causes bad breath?

The myth says that bad breath comes from the digestive system. It is not so. Almost all cases of bad breath involve bacteria that live under the tongue, in the throat, and often in the tonsils (if you still have them). There are many factors that can cause bad breath: dry mouth, thick saliva, the foods we eat, excessive smoking and/or drinking, diabetes and other illnesses, and believe it or not but also many oral care products that contain alcohol and sodium lauryl sulfate.

Dry mouth is the leading cause of bad breath. Medications such as high blood pressure or depression drugs, antihistamines, and alcohol, including all mouthwashes that contain alcohol, are the major culprits that result in dry mouth.

The rougher your tongue is, the more likely bad breath will occur. Those who have a fissured tongue, a bunch of little crevasses all over the tongue, are also more prone to bad breath.

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Specific foods that lead to bad breath

Everyone knows that onions and garlic produce a strong smelling breath. But do you know why? It's because the odorus molecules in onions and garlic are actually sulfur compounds themselves. Sulfur is nature's way of creating odors.

Drying agents: the most common drying agent in food is alcohol. Of course, this includes beer, wine and hard liquor, but it also includes all oral care products that contain alcohol in any concentration.

Dairy foods: these are notorious to cause bad breath. Millions of people worldwide are lactose intolerant, resulting in a buildup of amino acids which are easily converted into sulfur compounds found within the surface of your tongue and throat. Beef, chicken and fish may create the same problems in some people.

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Oral Sources of Halitosis

We explained above how certain foods can cause bad breath. Since halitosis is a mouth problem, so to speak, the following are common causes of halitosis:

Accumulation of food in the pockets around the teeth
Accumulation of food among the bumps at the back of the tongue
Food accumulation in small pockets in the tonsils
Little saliva
Poor oral hygiene
Faulty dental parts - fillings, crowns, etc.
Smoking
Impacted food
Foods listed in the previous section
Periodontal disease
Coating of the tongue

Medical conditions that cause bad breath

Peptic ulcer
Lung infections
Throat infections
Nasal and sinus infections
Kidney disease
Diabetes
Many forms of cancer
And in some cases, your own imagination
Liver disease

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Medications that may lead to bad breath

It is impossible to list here all medications that could cause dry mouth leading to bad breath, but we have assembled a short list of some of these medications to give you an idea.

Claritin (antihistamin)
Imigrex (migraines, headaches)
Norvasc (angina)
Paxil (antidepressant)
Prilosec (acid reflux and ulcer)
Prozac (antidepressant)
Vasotec (high blood pressure)
Zantac (digestive, acid reflux)
Zocor (cholesterol)

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What are the symptoms of bad breath?

a white coating on your tongue
post-nasal drip, allergies or mucus
dry mouth, morning breath, or burning tongue
thick saliva or constantly clearing your throat
people offer gum and mints
people don't get close to you
people turn their heads/back away when talking to you
constant sour, bitter or metallic taste
no help when scraping your tongue
no relief from brushing and flushing

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How do you know if you have bad breath?

What most people do is put their hand in front of their face in such a way to enclose the mouth and nose, exhale in it, and smell to see if there is any odor. All they accomplish is smell their hand. :) It is impossible to smell your own breath that way. Click here for a quick free test to see if you have or are a good "candidate" for bad breath.

There are two clinical ways to check if your breath is offensive:

Halimeter which measures the concentration of sulfides in your breath
At home by using the bad breath detective which is a home test for bad breath that measures the amount of sulfur coming from your tongue

There are also a few quick ways to give you an idea if your breath is offensive. You can find these on page 9 of the free e-book, Bad Breath Bible, which I strongly recommend.

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How do you prevent and cure bad breath?

choose oral care products that do not contain alcohol, saccharin or sodium lauryl sulfate
stay away from candies, mints and chewing gum if they contain sugar
watch out for acidic foods: coffee, both decaf and regular, tomato juice and all citrus juices (orange, pineapple and grapefruit)

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