How Can You Tell If You Have Bad Breath
There are many effective bad breath solution ideas that will help you get rid of your bad breath (or halitosis). But first you must determine if you have bad breath to start with. One way people can tell if they have halitosis is by licking the back of their hand and smelling it. If you lick your hand, the only portion of the tongue
that will be used is the anterior portion. Since bacteria that cause
bad breath reside at the back of the tongue, you can still not tell
if you have bad breath or not.
Another way is to breathe into their
hands after cupping them around their mouth and nose. The air you
breathe is not similar with the air you release when you talk. This
is because bad breath causing bacteria originate from the posterior
part of the tongue and only pushed forward once you speak. Thus you
can never tell if you have bad breath or not only by smelling your
own breath.
Now, how can you tell if you have bad
breath or not? The simplest way is by asking a young child. They will
not bite their tongue and will tell you the whole truth. Or, you can
use a halimeter. This is a device that tells you the amount of VSCs
you have in your mouth.
What Is Causing You To Have Bad Breath?
In more than 90% of the cases of bad
breath, the main cause is due to problems in the mouth particularly
at the back of the tongue and in spaces between the teeth. However,
there are people who get bad breath because of problems related to
their stomach. Many undergo intestinal cleansing method since they
believe that bad breath can be cured here since it originates in the
stomach. So, it is important to clearly know the origin of bad breath
before making an action.
How to Fix Bad Breath Problems
If you practice good dental hygiene
each day, it can help you fight bad breath. Brushing your teeth and
flossing can assist in eliminating some of your bad breath symptoms.
But because many think that doing these things can free them from bad
breath, the true meaning of good oral hygiene is often misunderstood.
It is simply not enough to just brush your teeth. There is a proper
way to do this. Same thing goes for using your dental floss.
For many people, they will just brush
their teeth for a mere 30 seconds. Obviously, this will not be
sufficient because each tooth can have the bad breath-causing
bacteria and food particles that can cause your breath to stink.
Therefore, each tooth requires your full attention to make certain
that they are clean and free of food particles. Thus, it is highly
recommended that you brush your teeth after each meal for at least 3
minutes.
Unfortunately, there are some people
who may brush and floss their teeth adequately but they are still
unable to eliminate their breath problems. This is because there is a
lot of 'bad' bacteria that resides on your tongue and so it must be
cleaned as well. You can do this with a toothbrush or a tongue
scraper.
Some simple changes to your diet can
also help freshen your breath up. Avoiding foods that contain sulfur
such as cabbage and onions can help stop temporary bad breath. But
entirely changing your diet is not the solution since it was
mentioned that over 90% of bad breath cases begin in the mouth.
The effective way to cure bad breath is
by eliminating the bacteria that cause it. And doing this requires
the combination of the right process to prevent bad breath.
There are some commercial mouthwashes
that can actually make your breath smell worse. A typical mouthwash
that you find in the oral care aisle at the supermarket contains
alcohol which can actually contribute to the formation of even more
areas for the 'bad' bacteria to breed and cause your breath to smell
even worse. This is because alcohol can cause your mouth to feel dry
and bacteria can breed much more quickly in a dry environment. This
gives them a greater ability to produce volatile sulfur compounds
(VSCs) that can lead to halitosis.
However, there are some newer
mouthwashes that are effective in alleviating bad breath symptoms
since they contain chlorine dioxide that can effectively attack VSCs.
To be certain, use mouthwash that is recommended by your family
dentist.
