HAVE BAD BREATH? TRY THESE CURES
Bad breath is a major turn off for anyone. Experts decode the causes and cure
Imagine, sitting next to a colleague in the office who has bad breath? It would be a horrible experience, right? Or what if you had bad breath and your friend’s pointed it out to you? It would be humiliating for you!
Bad breath, which is medically known as Halitosis, is caused by a group of anaerobic bacteria that produce sulphur that is responsible for the foul odour. They usually are found beneath the surface of your tongue.
To combat with bad breath, we got in touch with experts who explained the causes of Halitosis and how you can deal with it.
HOW TO CHECK IF YOU HAVE BAD BREATH
Sadly, most of us have no idea if we have bad breath or not, unless someone points it out to us. However, there are ways you can figure it out yourself. After flossing, smell your dental floss. If your breath smells like rotten eggs,then your breath stinks. You can also use a tongue scraper. If the gunk accumulates on the scraper and it stinks, you’ve got bad breath.
5 COMMON REASONS WHY YOU SUFFER FROM HALITOSIS
Bad oral hygiene: Most obvious reason for bad breath is poor oral hygiene. If you don’t brush regularly, then bacteria starts to build up in your gum and tongues. And when you eat, these bacteria feed on the food and after eating they release a gas (think of it as a bacteria fart), which is responsible for the foul odour. Dehydration/Dry mouth: The saliva in your mouth is like a natural mouthwash. It has antibacterial properties, which kills the odour producing bacteria. When you are dehydrated, your body doesn’t produce saliva, meaning you have dry mouth. However, dry mouth can also occur due to excessive talking, smoking or breathing through the mouth.
Food: Consuming onions and garlic increase the amount of sulphur in your mouth leading to bad breath. Coffee and alcohol tend to dehydrate your mouth leading to dryness.
Acid reflux: One of the unknown reasons why you have suffered from bad breath is because of acid reflux. Acid reflux occurs when your stomach contents, the food you have eaten, tends to come back in the oesophagus. This makes your odour smell like vomit.
Miscellaneous reasons: Sometimes bad breath could be symptoms of diseases such as diabetes, liver disease and bronchitis.
ONE OF THE UNKNOWN REASONS WHY YOU HAVE SUFFERED FROM BAD BREATH IS BECAUSE OF ACID REFLUX
(With inputs from Dr Shivani Dadwal Salaria and Dr Balaji Manohar)