As if we don’t have enough to worry about, the last thing that should consume your thoughts is whether you are raising havoc with your halitosis.
Keep your mouth clean. Yeah, that seems like a given, but oh so essential. If you work at keeping your teeth brushed and flossed, you help to keep the plaque away. Plaque, of course, is made up of odor-causing bacteria. In addition to brushing and flossing, be sure to wash your mouth out too with an antibacterial or antiseptic rinse. Also, scrape your tongue to get rid of additional bad-smelling bacteria. And, of course, twice-a-year visits to your family dentist are a must!
Watch what you consume. Onions and garlic are the prime culinary culprits when it comes to souring your breath. Even worse, they stick with you because the substances within them are absorbed in your blood stream and make their way to your lungs, where you then breathe them out. So if you’re concerned about your breath, especially prior to a special occasion, avoid onions and garlic entirely. On the flip side, fresh veggies such as celery and cucumbers are great for your breath. This is because they help to generate saliva that washes away the bacteria that causes odors. Munching on other crunchy vegetables helps to remove plaque from your teeth.
Avoid dry mouth. If you don’t have saliva in your mouth, then you can’t fight off odor-causing bacteria. To alleviate dry mouth, drink lots of water throughout the day. Also, chewing sugar-free gum will help to stimulate saliva production.
Maintain a healthy lifestyle. It goes without saying that tobacco products such as cigarettes and snuff can make for some pretty horrible breath. Also, too much alcohol causes dry mouth for at least eight to 10 hours after you stop drinking, which in turn can result in gnarly breath.
Keep tabs on your health. While oral hygiene and lifestyle habits play a large part in causing bad breath, sometimes the condition is caused by medical conditions such as sinus infections, diabetes, postnasal drip from allergies, or kidney diseases. So if you continue to have bad breath despite all your efforts to control it, you might need to see a physician.
But it’s possible. According to the American Dental Hygienists’ Association, nearly 40 million Americans commonly suffer from halitosis (also known as bad breath).
Regardless of whether you are affected by it or not, your family dentist suggests the following five tips that will help keep bad breath at bay:
If you’re in need of a family dentist and reside in the Columbus or Reynoldsburg areas, make a point to learn more about us. Get to know us better by visiting us now on Facebook!