Keep your mouth clean. Brush your teeth with a soft toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste at least twice a day. Brush well along the gumline and over all tooth surfaces. To remove food and plaque from between your teeth, floss every day. Curve the floss around each tooth to cover the side surfaces.
Don't forget to clean your tongue. It's a huge source of bacteria and odor. If brushing your tongue is uncomfortable use a special tongue scraper or the side of a spoon to gently scrape that sticky, germy film off your tongue. Either way, be gentle.
Dentures are a common source of bacteria and bad breath. If you have removable dentures, braces, or plates, keep them squeaky clean. Remove and brush them each night, and soak them in a disinfectant solution. Your dentist can tell you the best kind to use.
Beware of mouthwash. Antiseptic and deodorant mouthwashes and sprays only cover up breath odor temporarily - for about 10 minutes to an hour at most.
Mouthwashes containing alcohol can throw off your mouth's natural chemical balance and dry it out, which can cause bad breath. Swish and gargle only if your dentist recommends it.
These homemade mouthwashes may improve your breath without drying out your mouth:
- Mix some Listerine or Cepacol and olive oil. Gargle and spit out three times a day.
- Rinse with a mixture of half hydrogen peroxide and half water (don't gargle).
Prescription mouthwashes containing chlorhexidine seem to be effective in preventing gum disease. In studies, this germ-killing mouth rinse reduced bacteria by 50 percent. If you aren't able to brush and floss properly because of a physical disability, this rinse may help you avoid dental problems.
See your dentist. Get regular dental exams and talk to your dentist about any problems you're having, like ill-fitting crowns. Twice-yearly checkups and cleanings will keep your mouth healthy and sweet-smelling. If you have tooth decay or gum disease, both causes of bad breath, your dentist can fix the problem.
Shy away from certain foods. A spicy lunch, such as garlic chicken, liver and onions, fish, or a pastrami sandwich, can give you "death breath" by afternoon. But did you know eating meat makes your breath more pungent than eating fruits and vegetables? Once the chemical compounds in certain foods get into your bloodstream, your lungs excrete the odor. Breath sprays or mints won't cover it up. Alcohol, coffee, and tobacco (either smoked or chewed) are also causes of bad breath.
Serve up nutritious meals. Eat lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, rather than foods loaded with sugar and fat.
And don't forget calcium - it helps build strong teeth. Skim milk and other low-fat dairy products are good sources. Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, beans, and nuts are also high in calcium.
Eating yogurt or drinking buttermilk that contains active cultures will also douse bad breath. The active lactobacillus bacteria make it hard for other odor-causing bacteria to grow.
You can halt "hunger breath" by not skipping meals. If you skip meals, diet. or fast. you aren't supplying your body with enough nutrients, and it will begin to break down your internal supply of protein for energy. This process creates an odor you exhale from your lungs.
Drink lots of water. Saliva constantly washes anything out of your mouth that can cause bad breath. As you get older, your salivary glands produce less saliva. If your mouth is too dry, it generally gives off a bad odor.
Make sure you drink lots of water, at least six to eight glasses a day, but don't constantly rinse your mouth. You may be washing away any saliva that will help fight bad breath.
Suck on hard candies, especially lemon drops. Eat lots of oranges, grapefruit, and other citrus fruits. To stimulate the flow of saliva naturally, eat high-fiber foods, like celery, and chew sugarless gum or parsley.
Dry mouth can also be caused by sinus or throat infections, exercise, stress, mouth-breathing, talking, and certain medications, such as antihistamines, antidepressants, and anticoagulants.
Banish bad breath with green tea
Green tea's pleasant taste and aroma, its low cost, and its role in Eastern traditions have made it a staple in the Far East for more than 2,000 years. But now, modern science is proving that tea has a much more tangible, medicinal value. Available just about anywhere, green tea is more than just a good drink - it's a drink that's good for you.
Research shows that green tea may help fight cancer, heart disease, liver disease, diabetes, and colds and flu. Green tea can also keep your mouth healthy by curbing the growth of bacteria that cause cavities, plaque, and bad breath. What more could you ask from a tiny leaf?
If you can't imagine giving up your familiar bag of black tea, consider this. Green tea is green and black tea is black only because of the way they are processed. The leaves come from the same plant. To make green tea, the leaves are merely picked and steamed - almost no processing at all, which many people believe makes it healthier. To get black tea, the leaves must be processed a lot longer and allowed to ferment. An in-between tea, called oolong, is still fermented but for less time than black tea.
To make the best cup of green tea, don't allow your water to come to a complete boil - that makes it too hot. Steep the leaves for only about two to three minutes. For some tea drinkers, that may still be too long. Experiment to find out what tea strength suits your taste. You can even use green tea leaves more than once.
As the Japanese would say, "May you live 10,000 years!"
Drugs that cause bad breath
Bad breath can be a side effect of several commonly used drugs. If you are taking one of these, don't stop without your doctor's permission. But if bad breath is really bothering you or your family, ask if there's an alternative.
- Antineoplastic drugs, used to fight cancer, may cause mouth ulcers, bleeding of your gums, or a fungus infection in your mouth.
- Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), used to treat bladder problems and muscle pain, gives you garlic breath. Your body actually breaks down this drug into the chemical essence of garlic, then excretes it through your lungs and skin.
- Anticholinergic drugs, or drugs with anticholinergic effects, will dry out your mouth. They include antidepressants (for depression); antihistamines (for allergy); antipsychotics (for schizophrenia and other mental conditions); antiparkinsonians (for Parkinson's disease); and some drugs for intestinal problems, such as diarrhea.
- Diuretics, which remove excess fluid from your body, are often prescribed for high blood pressure and congestive heart failure. They also dry out your mouth.
- Antihypertensives, used to control high blood pressure, can give you dry mouth and bad breath.
When bad breath won't go away
Sometimes illnesses or diseases can cause bad breath. Read these symptoms carefully and see your doctor if you have any concerns.
Chronic kidney failure. If your breath constantly smells fishy or like ammonia and you have stomach pain, itchy skin, fatigue, paleness, muscle cramps and pain, tingling, and numbness or burning in your legs and feet, you might have chronic kidney failure.
Cirrhosis of the liver. This condition gives your breath a musty, rotten-egg odor. If you have mild jaundice, mental confusion, poor appetite and weight loss, fatigue and weakness, nausea or vomiting of blood, and excess fluid in your legs or abdomen, you could have cirrhosis of the liver. A history of hepatitis, liver damage, or alcohol consumption increases your risk.
Diabetic ketoacidosis. If you are diabetic, fruity-smelling breath could mean you have diabetic ketoacidosis, a dangerous condition in which your glucose level is severely out of balance. Other symptoms include stomach pain and tenderness, weakness, nausea and vomiting, and rapid heartbeat. This is a medical emergency, and you should get help immediately.
Lung condition or infection. A lung abscess, bronchitis, pneumonia, or emphysema can give you bad breath. Watch out for these warning signs - chronic cough with or without sputum, shortness of breath, fever and chills, and weight loss.
Periodontitis or tooth abscess. These serious dental problems can cause an unpleasant taste in your mouth and intense pain when chewing on the affected side. See your dentist as soon as possible to avoid tooth loss or an infection in your bloodstream.
Sinus infection. Constant bad breath, sinus drainage, headache, pain around your eyes and cheeks, and a general ill feeling could indicate a sinus infection.
Sjogren's syndrome. Bad breath caused by extreme dryness of your mouth and nasal passages can be an indication of Sjogren's syndrome. This autoimmune disease is common in people over the age of 50. This syndrome can also cause painful joints.
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