Chronic Bad Breath: What’s the Deal?

When we suffer from bad breath, it can be embarrassing, but we are not alone. We are among 90 million other Americans that also suffer from this ailment. The good news is that there are simple ways to stop it in its tracks. The first step is to have a proper dental health evaluation. This evaluation will help us discover any underlying conditions, such as gum disease, cavities or cracked fillings. If our oral health is in good standing, there are a few simple things that we can do to rectify the problem of bad breath.

Bad Breath Tactics

Enhance our oral hygiene – Sometimes bad breath is simply attributed to poor oral hygiene habits. Even if we brush our teeth twice a day, if we are not doing it right, we are not killing the germs that cause bad breath. When we brush our teeth, the toothbrush should be at a 45-degree angle and with light circular motions, we should thoroughly brush every tooth in our mouth, especially those way in the back. Those back teeth are often the culprit for bad breath as food particles can easily become lodged in them, making our breath less than pleasant to smell.

• Drink a lot of water – Water helps our body in a large number of ways, including washing out harmful food particles from our mouth that can contribute to bad breath. Because a dry mouth is often the culprit of bad breath, always keep water with you and take care to drink a glass after every meal.
• Avoid the use of mints – Breath mints, as they are so commonly known, simply mask the odor in our mouth, they are not a solution to the problem. While they might provide a temporary fix, once the mint smell is gone, the bad breath odor comes back. Avoid using breath mints as a method of oral hygiene.
• Chew sugarless gum – Sugarless gum that contains Xylitol could help to eliminate bad breath if chewed for 20 minutes following a meal. This tactic should not be used in place of brushing our teeth, but can be a helpful tactic when we are unable to get to our toothbrush right away.
• Carry toothpicks or floss – If there is an opportunity to slip into the bathroom and floss or use a toothpick, this could help to minimize bad breath by eliminating the harmful food particles in our mouth.

Chronic bad breath can be handled with these few simple tips, but always remember to keep regularly scheduled biannual dental appointments to ensure that oral health is in good standing.

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