Causes and Solutions – Bad Breath

Halitosis treatment in Burton and Ashby

There is little worse than meeting someone who has bad breath when they talk to you. In some cases such as a transaction in a shop, this unpleasantness is very temporary, but in business meetings for example, it can be a long and unpleasant time spent!  Of course, we can’t do anything about the other person’s breath unless we know them well enough to point it out to them, but we can make sure that we don’t have bad breath ourself.

Causes of Bad Breath 1 – Diet

One of the easiest methods to prevent bad breath is to watch what we eat. Garlic is perhaps the best known cause of bad breath but coffee and alcohol can also have a similar effect. Coffee will make the breath smell very bitter although this is temporary. Drinking alcohol however can have longer term effects. Whilst the smell of alcohol is significant, over a longer period, it will also cause a dry mouth and the lack of saliva causes the bacteria in our mouth to thrive and not be washed away.

Causes of Bad Breath 2 – Dental Care

Most of us know that if we don’t brush our teeth regularly then our breath will smell. Some people however think that this is simply because toothpaste smells nice which, whilst true, is not the full story. By brushing and flossing our teeth we help to prevent tooth decay, which in itself can give off an unpleasant aroma, but perhaps by far the biggest problem that regular brushing and flossing prevents is gum disease. This is one of the main causes of bad breath but thankfully it is relatively easy to treat if caught early on.

Treatment

If caught early, gum disease can often be treated simply by improving your dental care regime and your dentist can advise the best way to do this. If it is not caught early enough, your dentist may scrape away the hardened plaque with a special tool. Both of these stages are relatively minor but once it gets beyond this stage the treatment can be more invasive and if left too long, even result in loss of the teeth and the need for replacements such as a dental bridge or dental implants.

Provided that you keep up regularly appointments though, which we encourage you to do at our practice serving Burton and Ashby, any gum disease should be easily caught and treated meaning that you will have more pleasant smelling breath and won’t see people reel back as you open your mouth to speak to them.

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