Mints and mouthwash cover bad breath; they rarely fix it. The real causes of halitosis - food, dry mouth, gum disease, medications - and what actually helps.
Bad breath, also called halitosis, can be embarrassing, especially around your loved ones or in a business meeting. It is no wonder that store shelves are overflowing with gum, mints, mouthwashes, and other products designed to fight bad breath and keep our mouths feeling fresh. However, many of these products are temporary measures and do not address the cause of bad breath directly.
Certain foods, health conditions, and oral habits are among the causes of bad breath. In many cases, you can improve your breath with consistent proper oral care. If simple self-care techniques do not solve the issue, book an appointment with our office, as there may be an underlying cause.
What Causes Bad Breath?
Bad breath odours vary depending on the source or the underlying cause. While most patients tend to only have a mild case of bad breath that can be fixed with a proper oral care regime at home, there are cases which require a dental professional to intervene. Here are the main causes:
- Food - The breakdown of food particles in and around your teeth can increase bacteria and cause a foul odour. Eating certain foods, such as onions, garlic, and certain spices, can cause bad breath. After you digest these foods, they enter your bloodstream, are carried to your lungs, and affect your breath.
- Tobacco - Smoking causes its own unpleasant mouth odour. Smokers and oral tobacco users are also more likely to have gum disease, another source of bad breath.
- Dental hygiene - If you do not floss and brush at least twice daily, food particles remain in your mouth, causing bad breath. A colourless, sticky film of bacteria (plaque) forms on your teeth. If it is not brushed away, plaque can irritate your gums and eventually form plaque-filled pockets between your teeth and gums (periodontitis). Your tongue can also trap odour-producing bacteria, and dentures that are not cleaned regularly can harbour bacteria and food particles as well.
- Dry mouth - Saliva helps cleanse our mouths, removing particles that cause odours. A condition called dry mouth, or xerostomia, can contribute to bad breath because the production of saliva is decreased. Dry mouth naturally occurs during sleep, leading to "morning breath," and it worsens if you sleep with your mouth open. Chronic dry mouth can be caused by your salivary glands or other medical conditions.
- Medications - Some medications can indirectly produce bad breath by contributing to dry mouth, while others are broken down in the body to release chemicals that are carried on the breath.
- Infections - Bad breath can be caused by surgical wounds after oral surgery, such as a tooth removal, or because of tooth decay, gum disease, or mouth sores.
- Mouth, nose, and throat conditions - Bad breath can occasionally stem from small stones that form in the tonsils and are covered with bacteria, as well as from infections or chronic inflammation in the nose, sinuses, or throat.
- Other causes - Diseases such as some cancers, and conditions such as metabolic disorders, can cause a distinctive odour because of the chemicals they produce. Chronic reflux of stomach acids (gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD) is also associated with bad breath.
How to Stop Bad Breath
Some patients worry about their breath even though they have little or no mouth odour, while others have bad breath and do not realize it. Because it is difficult to assess how your own breath smells, ask a close friend or relative to confirm if you suspect you may have bad breath.
If you do have bad breath, review your oral hygiene habits first. Try making lifestyle changes such as brushing your teeth and tongue after eating, using dental floss daily, cleaning dentures thoroughly, and drinking plenty of water throughout the day. If your bad breath persists despite good home care, call our office so we can look for an underlying cause.