How To Prevent and
Get Rid Of Bad Breath.

Causes of bad breath and the connection to diet and habits.

What is it?

Because they are anaerobic and sulfur producing, when they react to these changes they produce chemicals compounds. Some of these compounds smell and taste terrible like hydrogen sulfide which smells like rotten eggs and other compounds.

Millions of people suffer embarrassment due to bad breath. The technical name for bad breath is "halitosis." Take a walk down the personal care aisle of any drug or grocery Store and you will find product after product all dealing with this condition.

Everyone has this occasional problem which is why Americans spend more than $200 million a year on products to freshen the breath. Pills, mouthwash, breath mints, toothpaste and more comprise this industry.

This may sound like a "no brainer" because you may think that bad breath is obvious to the person who has bad breath. That is not necessarily the case.

You may have cupped your hands and blown into them to try and determine if your breath smells, but that does not work because your body will naturally acclimatize to its own odor. This is necessary so that the sensory system will recognize odors that are external to the body.

If this is the case, then you need to look at external symptoms:

• Do you experience nasal drip?
  
  
• Do you have allergies?
  
  
• Do you have a chronic dry mouth?
  
  
• Do you experience a sour taste in your mouth?
  
  
• Do you have a coating on your tongue?
  
  
• Do your friends offer you gum or breath mints?
  
  
• Do strangers turn their heads away when you speak?

These may sound very basic questions but if you answered yes to any of them there is a good probability that you have a problem with bad breath. If you answered any of them with "I don't know," you need to become proactive and observe if any of the conditions apply to your situation.

Bad breath and your diet and habits

It is important to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet. Unfortunately all day snacks and binging have replaced the concept of "three square meals a day."

When indiscriminate snacking takes place oral hygiene goes out the window. If doubt that, begin a diary and document every single instance throughout the day when you place food or beverages in your mouth. Weight loss programs teach their users to do this and it can be an eye-opening experience. Some of our habits are so ingrained that we don't even realize what we are doing.

Someone brings a home made coffee cake to the office and it's very easy to unconsciously grab "just a little sliver" back to your desk along with your. . .what?. . third or fourth cup of java of course.

You may be sitting in the grandstands at a little league ballgame when your partner waves the bag of popcorn under your nose. Well, it's just a few kernels of popcorn, right?

Now, do you immediately run to the ladies or men's room at the office and brush your teeth? Do you leap off the bleachers and sprint to the "facilities" and floss? Of course not, that would be ridiculous, right? If we all did that, there wouldn't be a problem with dental disease or nasty breath.

All the snacking that we do throughout the day not only contributes to bad breath but snack food is usually very high in carbohydrates and produces excessive amounts of sugar that cause tooth decay and promote bad breath. Harmful acids contained in soda pop attack the enamel on the teeth, yet we sip on sodas all day long.

Which foods give you bad breath?

You've heard the term, "you are what you eat" and it certainly applies when it comes to your breath.

Foods like garlic, onions, peppers and more all have a role in creating bad breath. When the food you eat is released into the bloodstream, the lungs will expel the odor.

While garlic and onions seem to top the list of bad breath offenders, there are other foods that are just as likely to produce bad breath. A few of these are:

• Meats that are spicy like pepperoni, salami and pastrami
  
  
• Cheese, especially soft cheeses
  
  
• Fish
  
  
• Dairy foods
  
  
• Seafood
  
  
• Eggs
  

Low carb diets and bad breath

Practically every food that is high in protein is also a harbinger of nasty smelling breath. In fact practically one third of our diet is comprised of high protein foods.

This can be especially distressing if you are on a "high protein" diet. The obvious result is that when on a diet such as this bad breath will become significantly more annoying.

Sport drinks may harm your teeth and give you bad breath

And, if you thought that just sodas are the culprit, think again. A recent study claims that all those popular sports drinks we buy may not be such a good idea after all. They may re-hydrate the body, but they can cause irreversible damage to the dental enamel.

The study reports that fitness water, sports drinks, energy drinks and other non-cola beverages increase the risk of damage by anywhere from 3 to 11 times!

It should be mentioned that the findings are indicative of long term use. However, it appears that these drinks may not necessarily beneficial as a substitute for plain old-fashioned fresh water!

Prevent and get rid of bad breath

Serious medical conditions require intervention by your dental physician.

After visiting your dentist, if he cannot find a medical explanation for a persistent case of bad breath, consider trying some of the tips to prevent and get rid of bad breath:

• Drink plenty of water. Dehydration certainly won't help to improve the situation.
  
  
• Avoid an empty stomach. Yep, that's right! If you don't eat, your saliva production is reduced. You need that saliva to wash away the bacteria and avoid dry mouth.
  
  
• Add tea to your list of preferred beverages. It is thought that the chemical polyphenols found in tea help to prevent that sulfur producing bacteria that contributes to smelling breath.
  
  
• Dairy products may contribute to fermentation of food in the stomach. Try to eliminate all dairy products for one week and use that as a measure to determine whether your breath improves.
  
  
• As difficult as it may be, clean your teeth and tongue thoroughly each time you eat anything that is high in protein.
  
  
• Try and adjust your diet to contain less high protein foods and more high fiber foods. Foods high in fiber naturally produce some of those important enzymes we previously discussed.
  
  Fiber will help fight constipation. Homeopathic healers report that regular bowel movements help to rid the body of toxins that contribute to bad breath. Not only will changing to a higher fiber diet help your bad breath, it will also improve the overall health of your digestive system.
  
  
• Instead of snacking on junk food, try chewing on fresh fruits and vegetables, especially the crunchy foods. Apples, pears, celery and carrots are good suggestions. They will aid in enzyme production and the natural chewing of the crunchy foods will stimulate the gums.
  
  
• Consider adding that yogurt as a permanent part of your daily food intake. It will promote the production of the live bacteria you need.
  
  
• Stimulate the flow of saliva to keep the mouth moist. Remember to avoid ineffectual commercial mouthwashes. Chewing on a clove or adding a drop of cinnamon or peppermint oil on your tongue will be much more productive.
  
  
• If you are having postnasal drip, use an over the counter medication to reduce the flow of the noxious drainage of the draining mucous.
  There are numerous over the counter treatments for bad breath, the majority of which are ineffectual.
  
  
• If you would like to freshen your breath try preparing your own breath freshening mouthwash. A rinse consisting of a few drops of peppermint oil in a glass of water will do the trick nicely just don't count on it to kill bacteria. Also just use it as a rinse and do not swallow.
  
  
• Try drinking a small amount of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water at least once a day.
  

• If there were one single thing you can do to help prevent bad breath, it is to simply rinse out your mouth with fresh water after eating whether it is after snacking or between meals.
  
  In most cases that is easy to do and can go a long way toward helping the bad breath problem as well as your overall dental health. Rinsing your mouth won't eliminate all the bacteria producing particles, but it will get rid of some. Try it and make it a habit.