Bad breath makes it difficult for a person to communicate with others. However, bad breath is not only unpleasant for others. This may be a sign of some serious pathologies. Therefore, such a symptom should be paid attention to in time. Bad breath can occasionally occur in every person after eating certain types of food or poor cleaning of the teeth and gums. However, if the smell becomes constant and is noted for a long time, then most likely this is due to malfunctions in the body. Next, the main causes of bad breath and the treatment of this problem will be considered.
How to test fresh breath yourself
In medicine, an unpleasant smell from the mouth is called halitosis. There are several home remedies to help identify this symptom in yourself:
- You need to cover your mouth with your palms and exhale in them.
- To detect the presence of smell will help dental floss. It is placed between the teeth and then sniffed. An unpleasant odor is usually a sign of cavities.
- You can take an ordinary teaspoon, use it to remove plaque from the tongue and smell it.
- You can lick your wrist, let the skin dry andsniff.
In addition, special tests are sold in pharmacy chains that can be used to determine halitosis.
Other signs of bad breath
The patient cannot always self-diagnose halitosis. Many people are accustomed to their own stale breath and do not feel it. In this case, you should pay attention to indirect signs indicating the presence of bad breath:
- If a white coating forms in the mouth, this is a sign of a buildup of bacteria or a fungal infection. In this case, halitosis is always noted.
- Yellow coating on the tongue also indicates bad breath. This is most often associated with gastrointestinal problems.
- The appearance of an unusual taste (metallic, bitter, sour) in the mouth.
- The appearance of white plugs on the tonsils. This symptom is associated with diseases of the throat. A festering plug can cause halitosis.
During a conversation, you need to pay attention to the reaction of the interlocutors. If a person has halitosis, then others try to move away from him at a distance or turn away.
What is the reason for the smell
All causes of bad breath can be divided into two groups:
- natural (physiological);
- pathological.
In the first case, the appearance of halitosis is not associated with any disease. If the smell is caused by a pathology, then treatment of the underlying disease is necessary, otherwise it will be very difficult to eliminate the unpleasant odor.difficult.
When the smell is not associated with disease
Smell from the mouth may appear after eating certain types of food. For example, onions, spicy spices, garlic and radish have a sharp pronounced aroma. Odorous molecules from food enter the bloodstream and then to the lungs. These particles are released along with the exhaled air, which leads to temporary halitosis. Bad breath in this case disappears quickly. As soon as the food is completely processed and leaves the body, the smell disappears.
One of the common causes of halitosis is the neglect of hygiene. If you do not brush your teeth regularly, tiny particles of food remain on the enamel. When they decompose, bacteria form and smell.
Smoking is a common cause of bad breath in adults. Particles of nicotine and harmful tar accumulate on the tongue, teeth and gums. These substances have a specific unpleasant odor. To get rid of halitosis in this case, you must either quit smoking or clean your teeth and tongue from nicotine deposits several times a day.
Sometimes the cause of bad breath is poor cleaning of removable dentures. They often harbor bacteria. Therefore, dentures need serious care. They should be brushed regularly with a toothbrush and placed overnight in an antiseptic formulation.
Halitosis often affects people who want to lose weight because of too strict diet and severe food restrictions. Whereinthe body has to use its own fats and proteins, and blood glucose levels drop. These biochemical processes are accompanied by the release of substances with a pungent odor. A starving person develops halitosis. At the same time, a characteristic "chemical" smell is felt in the exhaled air. It is a bit like the sharp flavor of acetone.
In the above cases, halitosis is easily eliminated. If you revise your diet, give up bad habits and regularly clean your mouth of bacteria and food debris, then the unpleasant odor disappears. Topical halitosis remedies such as chewing gums, sprays and breath freshening capsules can also help.
Possible pathologies
Consider the pathological causes of bad breath in adults. Treatment in these cases should be aimed at eliminating the cause of halitosis. It is necessary to undergo a course of therapy for the underlying disease, which led to bad breath. Without this, getting rid of the smell will be very difficult. The use of topical oral products can only provide a temporary effect.
The following pathological causes of bad breath can be distinguished:
- Excessive drying of the oral mucosa. It is formed due to reduced salivation. Many he althy people have bad breath in the morning. This is due to the fact that the salivary glands secrete little secret at night. There is a pathological condition called xerostomia. It is characterized by constant dryness in the mouth and weak work of the salivary glands. One of its symptoms is halitosis. Saliva flushes bacteria out of the cavitymouth, so its deficiency results in odor.
- Dental pathologies. The smell from the mouth is noted almost always with diseases of the teeth and gums. With caries and periodontitis, an accumulation of bacteria occurs in the oral cavity, which leads to halitosis.
- Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. With pathologies in the intestine, many harmful microorganisms are formed. There are active fermentation processes in the digestive tract. As a result, putrefactive bacteria release gases that a person exhales through the mouth.
- Respiratory diseases. Pathologies such as chronic rhinitis, sinusitis, sinusitis often cause bad breath. Mucous discharge from the nose to the throat. This causes bad breath. In addition, due to nasal congestion, a person inhales and exhales through the mouth. As a result, the mucous membrane dries up, and the bacteria are not washed out with saliva.
- Chronic depressive states. The state of the mind can also affect the freshness of the breath. With stress and depression in a person, the secretion of saliva and the microflora of the oral mucosa are disturbed. When the patient calms down, his breath becomes fresh again.
In addition, any neglected chronic diseases are the cause of bad breath: diabetes mellitus, liver and kidney pathologies, hormonal disorders, etc. If a patient with halitosis does not have problems with teeth and gums, then a complete examination by a therapist. Perhaps the cause of bad breath lies in chronic internal diseases.
Causes of halitosis in children
Baby smell from the mouth occurs for the same reasons thatand in an adult. However, there are specific factors that influence the occurrence of halitosis in childhood:
- Children often have enlarged tonsils and adenoids. Microbes actively multiply on these formations, which causes the smell.
- If parents do not regularly clean their child's mouth, then stuck food particles lead to halitosis, and then to caries.
- Worm infestation causes severe intestinal dysbacteriosis, which leads to the multiplication of putrefactive bacteria and bad breath.
- Children usually like sweets. Excessive amounts of such food can also affect the freshness of breath. A sweet environment is favorable for the growth of bacteria.
- Foreign bodies in the nose cause inflammation and secretion of mucus accompanied by an unpleasant odor.
- Genetic pathologies that occur with metabolic disorders can cause halitosis.
Diagnosis
In addition to true halitosis, there is a condition that is called pseudohalitosis in medicine. With this pathology, a person subjectively feels the stench from his own mouth. However, there is no real smell. This is most often observed in neurosis and mental disorders. Therefore, if a person complains of halitosis, then an objective examination should be carried out. It will help to distinguish the real smell from the imaginary one.
For this purpose, the following tests are carried out:
- When talking with a patient, the doctor pays attention to the smell of exhaled air. Then halitosis is assessed on a special scale. This method is called hedonistic. Histhe downside is that the doctor's assessment can be subjective.
- A more objective study is a test using a special device. It determines the content of sulfur compounds in the exhaled air. The greater the amount of such substances, the more pronounced halitosis.
- Carry out a microbiological examination of plaque for bacteria.
If a patient has pseudohalitosis and there are no objective signs of bad breath, then the patient is recommended to consult a psychotherapist. If the examination revealed true halitosis, then it is necessary to visit a dentist, gastroenterologist and ENT. This will help identify the etiology of the smell.
How to get rid of halitosis
There are many ways to treat bad breath in adults. The causes of halitosis will determine the choice of therapy. It is necessary to eliminate the disease that caused the smell. Usually, after the course of treatment and recovery, halitosis disappears. In this case, various medicines are used depending on the type of pathology.
How to get rid of bad breath during treatment for the underlying disease? After all, the process of therapy can be lengthy, and a person has to communicate daily with others. For this purpose, local remedies are prescribed to eliminate the smell. However, they only temporarily eliminate halitosis. These include the following drugs:
- "Galitox".
- "Smelix".
- OralProbiotic.
- ProFloraOralHe alth.
- "Septogal".
- Hydrogen peroxide (tablets).
These drugs are available in tablet form. They contain fragrant botanicals and germicides.
You can also use chewing gum or mint flavored candies. Menthol will give your breath a pleasant smell. It is also helpful to use mouth freshener frequently.
Cleansing the mouth from bacteria and plaque
How to remove bad breath if bacteria have accumulated on the mucosa? You need to thoroughly clean your teeth and gums. However, doing it yourself, using only a brush, is sometimes very difficult. After all, microorganisms and food particles can get stuck in hard-to-reach places.
Therefore, if bacteria have accumulated in the mouth, it is better to visit a dentist. The doctor will perform the following procedures:
- cleaning teeth with special floss;
- tartar removal;
- cleaning the enamel.
Professional teeth cleaning will help to completely remove all harmful bacteria. Dental treatment for bad breath is complemented by cleansing the tongue at home. Patients often forget about this during morning hygiene procedures. But it is on the tongue that many microorganisms settle in the form of plaque, which lead to halitosis.
You can clean your tongue using the following procedures:
- With a toothbrush with applied paste, hold in the direction from the root of the tongue to the tip. Thus, it is necessary to remove the entire plaque. In this case, the tongue should not be pressed hard to avoid injury. It is betteruse antibacterial paste.
- You can buy a special spoon at the pharmacy to remove plaque from the tongue and remove deposits with it.
After the end of the procedures, the oral cavity is treated with a rinse aid. This will help to eliminate the smell for a while. To achieve a lasting effect, cleansing the tongue is carried out daily.
If professional teeth cleaning and removal of plaque from the tongue do not lead to improvement, then most likely the cause of halitosis lies in internal pathologies.
Home Treatment
Can you cure bad breath at home? If the cause of halitosis is the presence of pathology, then the use of folk recipes will not be enough. However, you can supplement drug therapy with the use of home remedies. To reduce the manifestations of halitosis, you need to adhere to the following recommendations:
- Frequently rinse your mouth with decoctions of herbs: chamomile, sage, St. John's wort, bitter wormwood. They have bactericidal and anti-inflammatory properties. It is advisable to rinse every time after eating.
- To quickly freshen your breath, gargling with vegetable oil, chewing roasted seeds, powdered dry cloves, mint leaves or other fresh herbs will help freshen your breath.
- You need to limit the consumption of onions, garlic, coffee, meat. It is important to remember that protein-rich foods can cause odor when processed in the body.
- Drink as much water as possible. This will help flush out the bacteria. This is especially useful for patients with reduced productionsaliva.
- If the patient has dry mouth, it is useful to periodically chew parsley, cloves or mint. These plants stimulate salivation and help remove bacteria from the mouth.
- It is useful to use an electric toothbrush. It will help remove plaque and bacteria more thoroughly.
Such home methods cannot replace full-fledged medical treatment. They will only help temporarily freshen your breath and remove the smell.
Conclusion
Halitosis can significantly complicate a person's life. However, bad breath can be easily prevented. To do this, you need to thoroughly and regularly clean your teeth, gums and tongue, stop smoking and monitor your diet. It is important to have regular check-ups at the dentist and to cure caries and periodontitis in time.
Sometimes halitosis becomes the first sign of a chronic disease that a person is not even aware of. Therefore, with persistent bad breath, you should immediately contact a specialist and undergo an examination.
