DR. DIPILLA IS NOW Ever exhaled into the palm of your hands for a quick “breath check”? It’s hard to smell our own breath, so sometimes we need to rely on others to inform us if we have an issue in that department, but what you want to do is try and fix the problem before it occurs.
Bad breath can stem from a multitude of reasons. The main cause of bad breath is bacteria lodged deep in the crevice of our tongue. We can use mouthwash, but that only masks the problem for a few hours. In addition, the overuse of mouthwash can kill good bacteria, furthering the problem. Try adding a tongue scrapper to your usual oral hygiene routine every few days. Start on the back of the tongue and scrap forward to bring all the particles to the front of the mouth so they can be washed out. You will be shocked by how much debris we can remove from our tongue that is likely contributing to bad odor.
Eat better for better breath. Food that is rich in fiber like fruits and vegetables which are usually crunchy and can actually help remove plaque from our teeth. Increase the amount of raw fruits and veggies and you will notice an improvement. Try probiotics like yogurt! Eating more foods with good bacteria can help to change the ratio of good to bad bacteria in the mouth. Bad bacteria can cause a sulfur or rotten egg type odor to develop. Also, speak with your doctor if you experience frequent heart burn. Acid reflux is known to cause bad breath stemming from the gases in our stomach. In this instance, good oral hygiene will not solve the issue.
Dry mouth can be another culprit of bad breath. If your doctor recently put you on a new medication you may notice a decrease in saliva. If this persists, speak with your doctor to see if an alternative medication may be a better solution for you. Chewing sugar free gum is a great way to stimulate salivary flow and freshen your breath! Just make sure its sugar free, we don’t want to give bacteria free sugar to use and turn our breath sour.
