The Bad Breath Blog

If there’s one lesson I’ve learned from being a halitosis professional, it’s that people will try virtually anything to get rid of bad breath. And who can blame them? Oral odor is difficult to get rid of at the best of times, so much so that it’s usually advisable to ditch one’s run-of-the-mill dental products in favor of a specialty breath freshening regimen.

You see, specially formulated, all-natural products can moisten the mouth and oxygenate the palate, thereby neutralizing odors and effectively shoo-ing bacteria out of the oral environment. That’s the open secret of freshening breath: It all boils down to making life hard for your mouth’s microbes.

However, it’s important to do so without synthetic chemicals, irritants, allergens or other harsh substances. These ingredients generally make little or no progress in fighting bacteria; instead, they irritate the tissues in your mouth and parch your palate, making bad breath worse.

Yet these are the types of ingredients many Americans saturate their mouths with every day. And if you think that people won’t go to extremes in the effort to eliminate halitosis, well, buckle up.

Here is a list of some of the bizarrest substances used at one time or another in the fight against oral odor. And before you sneer at them, keep in mind that some of them are probably lurking in your medicine cabinet right now.

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Use a common, alcohol-based mouthrinse, and you may find that your bad breath does not go away over time – or worse, that it slowly intensifies. At TheraBreath, we understand this problem. We believe that the best mouthwash is one that neutralizes halitosis naturally while moistening your mouth and keeping its pH balanced.

If you believe that irritation caused by alcoholic mouthwashes is an uncommon occurrence, think again. Numerous studies have  addressed the connection between canker sores and the synthetic chemicals found in typical oral rinses. Likewise, plenty of consumers complain about the ineffectiveness of these products.

For instance, in a recent letter to the UK Telegraph’s LifeCoach column, a reader noted that they suffer from chronic halitosis, even though they clean their teeth regularly. Nutritionist Sara Stanner responded that the best mouthwash, toothpaste and dental care regimens in general are those that promote oral moisture.

She emphasized that merely stimulating natural salivation can reduce the level of bad breath. At TheraBreath, we go one step further by providing products with natural ingredients that both encourage and preserve the production of moisture in the mouth.

Consider the new TheraBreath PLUS Oral Rinse, an oxygenating formula mouthwash containing zinc, tea tree oil, green tea, aloe vera, xylitol and mint oils. These substances do wonders for bad breath by attacking oral microbes and neutralizing their odor compounds.

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Bad breath (halitosis), especially if its chronic, can sometimes be a symptom of a much more major dilemma. It is very important that people do not overlook this problem, because it can be a sign of a terminal illness. Dental experts have linked halitosis to everything from pneumonia, bronchitis, chronic sinus infections to liver problems, kidney problems, and diabetes. People who have gastritis can have halitosis because of their stomach’s high acidic levels.

Unfortunately, most people do not regard bad breath as a serious problem, and just try to disguise it with peppermint or mouthwash. Halitosis has also been linked to chronic acid reflux and constipation. If one is practicing good oral hygiene, and avoiding foods that cause strong odors like petai, onions, etc., then it is possible that one has a problem that is more than just bad breath.

Many people will find that chewing gum only hides the bad breath and bad tastes temporarily. According to dental experts, 80% of bad breath sufferers have a mouth-related illness causing the problem; however, few people actually make regular visits to the dentist as needed. Tooth decay, cavities, gingivitis, dry mouth (xerostamia, caused by the lack of saliva), and oral cancer all cause halitosis. If a person has gum disease and does not treat it, it can lead to serious damage to the gums and jawbone. Some sources say that mouthwashes containing alcohol have been linked to oral cancer!  TheraBreath is an example of a mouthwash that does NOT have alcohol as an ingredient.

No one likes having bad breath (halitosis) or smelling it on someone else.  Halitosis comes from the Latin word “halitus,” meaning breath.  As you probably know by now, if we do not care for our teeth and gums properly, bacteria will grow and cause problems like tooth decay.

Finding the correct bad breath/halitosis cure for you may not be easy, because there are a plethora of causes that need different solutions.   There are a variety of causes…everything from rotten food inside the mouth, lung abscess during bronchitis, poor digestion, and other medical conditions.

Saliva is the body’s natural defense against dry mouth and oral malodor.  Saliva helps balance the good and bad bacterias by getting rid of food debris and other unwanted objects that can create foul-smelling compounds.  Saliva is the easiest cure to bad breath.  Morning breath is usually caused by the low production of saliva, so eating breakfast is important to get the salivary glands working in the morning.

Also, there are many foods (onions, coffee, and garlic) and excessive spices that can cause bad breath.  Some of these edibles can take up to 72 hours after digestion before one can smell them on someone’s breath.

Here are some common pointers to avoid halitosis:

• Brushing regularly
• Flossing/using mouthwash
• Getting a dental checkup at least 2X/year
• Chewing sugar-free gum to moisten the mouth
• Eating fresh/fibrous vegetables
• Drinking lots of water and other fluids (excluding sugar-added drinks)
• Avoiding alcoholic beverages
• Trying natural remedies like green cardamom, baking soda, and parsley/mint garnishes.

Good luck!

Whenever I have post nasal drip, my breath gets worse. Does this mean bad breath comes from the sinuses?

No. That’s because the anaerobic sulfur-producing bacteria that create bad breath live and breed within the back of the tongue and in the throat. They have the ability to digest mucus (because of high protein content) & then break it down into sulfide molecules, which cause the bad breath & bitter, sour taste. The correct way to fight bad breath due to post nasal drip is to use a combination of nasal/sinus drops and oxygenation tablets, creating an oxygenating solution to cleanse the throat and tonsil area.

Can I still use my regular toothpaste and mouthwash if I use TheraBreath? 

No. Almost all commercial toothpaste’s contain sodium lauryl sulfate (SOAP), placed in toothpaste in order to create a foaming action, so that you think that something is actually happening. It has no beneficial effects at all. Unfortunately it will also inhibit the potency of the active ingredients. That is why those who use Oxyfresh toothpaste should read the ingredients in their toothpaste: It contains sodium lauryl sulfate! This will negate the benefits of the oxidation process.

Once in a while I get these small white round dots that appear on my tonsils, and sometimes I even cough them up. They have an extremely strong odor. What are they and is this related to my breath and taste disorder?  

Those little round globules are known as tonsilloliths and they are most definitely related to halitosis and sour taste. They are created by sulfur gases produced by these bacteria (which are located across from the tonsils in the throat area). The sulfur gas mixes with the mucus and thick saliva in the back of your throat and after a period of time, condense into these concentrated, odorous globs. They are only present when one has tonsils, but not in all cases.

I have had many patients who have actually had their tonsils removed due to misinformation from physicians about this problem. Of course, these patients still had bad breath after having the tonsillectomy, because bad breath does not start in the tonsils, only on the back of the tongue! However, it can branch off into the tonsils.

Important: To reduce halitosis (if you have tonsilloliths) here’s what my patients tell me they have done to solve this problem:

Swallow 1-2 capfuls of the solution created with the AktivOxigen tablets, before bedtime.  Generally, you will feel that the odor and lousy taste are neutralized as the rinse solution passes the tonsil area.

I scrape my tongue all day, but yet I still have bad breath. My dentist gave me this huge tongue scraper and told me to use it daily because it might scrape off the bacteria. I gag just by looking at it. Is there any truth to this or is it just one of those fads? 

Now, that’s a good question! In my opinion, and based on helping tens of thousands of people who have suffered with bad breath, tongue scraping by itself is NOT the answer. In fact, I have seen dozens of cases in my clinics where people have just scraped too hard and for too long, resulting in damage..painful tongue, dry tongue, and burning tongue!

We prefer to use the tongue cleaner as an application device with a very gentle cleansing motion on the tongue from the back to the front. This helps to apply the TheraBreath gel below the tongue’s surface to where the bacteria actually live. The bacteria cannot live ON the tongue surface because they are anaerobes, meaning they can’t survive on the surface.

I don’t have bad breath or any taste problems, but I want to use the best toothpaste and mouthwash you have. Which products should I use? 

I would recommend the PerioTherapy of Oral Rinse and Toothpaste. It’s similar to the TheraBreath PLUS line, but focuses more on gum health, which is still the number one oral disease in the world – more of a problem than cavities by far! And because chronic gum disease can lead to other health problems, such as heart attacks, strokes, pneumonia, and birth problems for pregnant women, we highly recommend PerioTherapy products.

My boyfriend sometimes has bad breath. Is it possible for him to give it to me when we French kiss? 

Simply put: you can’t give bad breath to someone else. The bacteria that create this problem are actually good bacteria and are part of the normal oral flora (the mix of bacteria that you need to function properly). It’s possible that the bacteria in your boyfriend’s mouth (tongue, throat, tonsils) are reacting to his dry mouth, which could have been created by smoking, medication, or alcohol.

I can smell the bad breath coming from my nose when I exhale. What can I do about this? Am I imaging things? 

You are not imagining anything. There are odors that can be detected in some cases as they emanate from the nostrils. This type of odor is due to mucus in the nasal passage and its reaction to bacteria in the nostrils (not in the sinus). It may also be a by-product of the reaction between mucous, post nasal drip, or allergies in the area beyond the sinus (in the naso-pharyngeal area and the throat/tonsil area). The solution is quite simple – TheraBreath Nasal Sinus Drops are the only oxygenating/zinc formula to attack this type of problem.

Is there any way I can whiten my teeth and get rid of bad breath at the same time? I don’t have the time to use dozens of different products several times a day. 

Actually, our TheraBrite toothpaste is BOTH a whitening toothpaste AND a breath toothpaste. Just use it in conjunction with any of our oxygenating rinses – TheraBreath, AktivOxigen, TheraBreath PLUS, and PerioTherapy – All of our products are designed to work together.