Lets begin with a small exercise to check the smell of your breath —
Hold the inside of your palm close to your mouth and blow sharply into your palm, then smell your palm.
What does this breath smell like?
Is it neutral smelling? Is it foul smelling? Is it floride smelling?
The smell of your breath does indicate alot about your gut health and your mouth and tongue cleanliness.
If the foul odour lingers even after brushing your teeth, cleansing your tongue, flossing and rinsing your mouth with the right products, chances are you might have a case of bad breath.
While everyone gets bad breath from time to time — especially after eating garlic, onions or other strong or pungent foods, if the bad breath stays like an unwanted guest or your lifestyle habits are a bit on the lazy side, you might have an issue on hand.
Bad breath is medically called halitosis. It’s a result of poor dental health or a symptom of other health problems. Finding the root cause of halitosis is the first step in treating the issue. It might be time to pay a visit to your dentist, who will diagnois and determine the right course of action.
Here are some hygiene measures to get rid of bad breath —
Brush your teeth —
Its important to brush your teeth, but even more important is the method.
- We always brush our teeth up to down and not left to right. As you hit your gums, tiny food particles get dislodged and are washed away when you risne your mouth.
- Use just a peanut size amount of floride or antibacterial toothpaste, excess floride is not necessary for the enamel of your teeth.
- Brush for two minutes hitting every tooth.
- Use a soft to medium bristol toothbrush.
- Brush early morning on waking and before bedtime. Anything inbetween is welcome.
- Replace your toothbrush every two months or after an illness.
- Do not cover your toothbrush, leave it open to dry naturally, the air prevents bacteria from settling on your wet toothbrush. A dry toothbrush is a clean toothbrush.
Clean your tongue—
Good oral hygiene is crucial when it comes to fighting the bad breath battle. More than your gums, your tongue is the perfect place for bacteria to live and multiply rapidly. After brushing your teeth and rinsing your mouth, use a tongue cleaner to scrape the white film or coating that is on your tougue. The coating that normally forms on your tongue is the perfecting landing strip for smelly bacteria. If you use a tongue scraper daily as an extra step to clear up any build up on your tongue, you will definitely keep bad breath at bay. A pink tongue is an indication of a clean gut.
Use effective mouth rinses —
A mouthwash adds extra protection by getting rid of bacteria and plaque on your teeth and tongue. Using an alcohol-free antibacterial mouthwash or chlorine dioxide mouthwash is bad breath’s mortal enemy.
A Tip: mouthwash is strong and may mar your taste buds with over use, half a cap full is plenty and always give it a break , fifteen days of continious use, fifteen days break could be a good cycle.
Avoid dry mouth —
The key to avoiding bad breath is to keep your mouth moist. Drink plenty of water, chew gum or suck on a sugar free candy to stimulate saliva production which will keep your mouth from getting dry. Alcohol, tobacco, aerated drinks, and coffee make your mouth dry. If you do consume any of these products be sure to drink water along with it.
Stay hydrated —
Saliva and water are great for your mouth. Your mouth needs to stay moist. Drink plenty of water throughout the day to keep your mouth from drying out.
Fix your diet —
Onions, garlic and sugar- it might be time to avoid those if you want to stay away from bad breath or if you plan on kissing someone tonight.
Opt for green vegetables, they contain chlorophyll, which helps freshen your breath. Some other common foods that can cause bad breath are cheese, dairy products, coffee, meat, certain spices, fenugreek, alcohol, orange juice and sugary sodas. If you have them, follow up with the brushing, tongue cleaning, mouthwash routine.
Green tea for the win —
Just like green vegetables, green tea is a bad breath fighter. Green tea contains catechin, a powerful antioxidant that kills bad breath causing bacteria. Green tea disinfects and deodorises your mouth. You can add mint to your green tea for added freshness.
Opt for natural breath mints —
The bacteria in your mouth loves sugar. So naturally opting for sugar free is the way to go. The bacteria uses sugar to make acid which wears down your teeth and causes bad breath. Parsley and mint are considered as natural breath mints. The oils in these herbs destroy the odour breeding bacteria. Some other natural breath fresheners are coriander, elaichi or cardamom, cinnamon, cilantro, eucalyptus, rosemary, spearmint and tarragon.
Remember that these odour fighting foods are just temporary fixes. Oral hygiene is the solution!
Keep your gums healthy —
An alcohol free, antiseptic mouthwash can help kill the built up bacteria in your mouth that causes bad breath and plaque. This can cause gingivitis and gum disease. Your gums are a very delicate part of your body and need to be taken care of. Make sure you take care of your gums the same way you take care of your teeth. Using a soft bristled toothbrush, gently brush along the gumline in small circles. Never brush across your gums, this can damage them and cause bleeding.
The culprit might be sitting in your medicine cabinet —
All of a sudden do you find your mouth smelly? Maybe you’ve started a new medication recently? The medications you take could be the culprit. Certain drugs can cause cottonmouth which is a magnet for bad breath. If this is the case, consult your health professional for a possible solution or alternative medicine.
Smoking is injurious to health and your breath —
Smoking and bad breath go hand in hand. If you’re a smoker, you have bad breath. Smoking dries out your mouth really quickly. Its important to stay hydrated if youre a smoker to reduce the stench in your mouth. If you want fresh breath it might be time to cut back on those cigarettes or give it up all together.
Conclusion —
Bad breath is a very treatable condition.
Visit your dentist regularly for checkups and cleanings to make sure your oral health is in check.
Halitosis can make you feel self conscious, embarrassed and negatively affect your self esteem.
Most important to know is that the cause of bad breath may not be your oral hygeine but the way your digestive system works, some foods do trigger a chemical imbalance causing bad breath or body odour.
Awareness is key — do the breath test on your palm several times a day and handle your breath odour accordingly.
Look at it this way- bad breath isn’t something to be ashamed of, its your body telling you that something isn’t right.
