Causes and Treatments for Bad Breath

Bad breath, which can become a constant companion of a person, can ruin relationships with others and reduce self-esteem. This condition is called halitosis, or halitosis. It is not an independent disease, but is one of the important symptoms of pathologies of the oral cavity and internal organs. You can drown out the stench with mints, spray or chewing gum, but this will not get rid of the problem. We need comprehensive diagnostic measures and subsequent elimination of the causes of halitosis.

Causes of bad breath

People who have never experienced ozostomy often consider the problem to be a consequence of insufficient cleanliness, which is most often completely untrue. In 90% of cases, the cause of halitosis (or halitosis) is bacteria that accumulate in the mouth. The result of their vital activity is sulfur components, which cause a sharp, unpleasant odor. The remaining 10% of cases are associated with diseases of the internal organs, medications or diet.

Types of halitosis

In order to eliminate the problem, you first need to recognize the enemy by sight. So, doctors distinguish several types of halitosis:

physiological . Its cause is those same anaerobic microorganisms. Moreover, sometimes at a dentist’s appointment it is discovered that the patient’s teeth and gums are absolutely healthy, but the bad smell still persists;
pathological _ The factors of its occurrence are diseases of the internal organs and clearly visible inflammation in the oral cavity;
pseudohalitosis . In this case, we are not talking about a strong smell, and those around you do not experience discomfort when communicating. But the patient himself claims that he hears an unpleasant odor. This situation is often observed after successful treatment of osostomy, and is called pseudohalitosis.

Sources of halitosis

The smell of rotten breath is a serious reason to visit the dentist.

How to find out for yourself if there is bad breath?

Of course, others will never tell the patient about such a delicate problem in an adult. Therefore, you can only rely on yourself in the initial diagnosis. It’s good that there are many simple ways to find out whether there is bad breath or not.

The simplest method is to clench your palm into a fist and breathe into it. Then bring your hand to your nose. Do you smell a strong smell? If so, it's time to make an appointment with your doctor! A small plastic spoon will also help detect the presence of odor. Use it to remove plaque on your tongue. After a minute, evaluate the smell. The same can be done with a napkin or cotton pad. True, this method is quite unpleasant to implement.

If using dental floss has long become a habit for you, do not rush to throw it away after use. It’s better to take a closer look: what color is it painted? Yellowness will indicate the presence of bacterial plaque, redness will indicate that the gums are bleeding. You can evaluate the smell of the thread 30 seconds after use. This is how others perceive your breathing.

Good toothpastes and chewing gums skillfully mask even the strongest odor. Therefore, the best time to test for fresh breath is 3 hours after brushing your teeth or eating chewing gum.

Types of bad mouth odors

Sniffing, trying to catch the nuances of the stench is not a pleasant task. But this is the only way to understand which organ is sending the distress signal. Therefore, if the breath freshness test indicates a problem, think about what the smell resembles.

Putrid smell

Its appearance is provoked by bacteria living both in the oral cavity and in the gastrointestinal tract. In the process of processing food residues, microorganisms release waste products, the main component of which is sulfur compounds. This smell is usually very pungent and can be heard over a fairly long distance.

Rotten egg smell

The smell of rotten eggs or meat in 90% of cases causes advanced periodontitis or extensive carious cavities.

If the dentist does not find the problem, you should look for an answer in the gastroenterologist’s office. It is likely that an unpleasant odor is a signal of a malfunction in the digestive system. Sometimes in this way the body informs its owner about excessive consumption of protein foods. During its breakdown, hydrogen sulfide is formed, which has an odor reminiscent of rotten eggs.

Sour smell

The appearance of an acidic smell may indicate a number of unpleasant pathologies. This is exactly what gastritis, duodenal ulcers and chalazia (esophageal insufficiency) “smell” like. If bad breath is accompanied by heartburn and frequent sour belching, you should visit a gastroenterologist: the examination will certainly reveal problems of the gastrointestinal tract.

Smell of acetone

In adults, it is an invariable companion to diabetes mellitus. May indicate poor functioning of the liver, kidneys and thyroid gland. Sometimes the smell of acetone appears during severe acute respiratory diseases. And almost always when fasting and following low-carb diets. In the latter case, you just need to reduce the consumption of protein and too fatty foods, and the smell will go away.

A special case is the smell of acetone from a child’s mouth. The mother of every 5 baby has encountered it at least once. Acetonemic syndrome is a life-threatening condition that occurs against the background of infections, overwork, and after overeating. It requires immediate medical intervention!

Ammonia smell

Ammonia odor is often caused by taking medications containing amino acids. Sometimes it can even be vitamins. Another common cause is a low-carbohydrate diet, which causes the liver and kidneys to work at their limit. In this case, increasing the amount of fluid you drink, preferably water, can improve the situation.

If you are not fasting, drinking enough fluids, and the smell of ammonia from your breath still haunts you, this is a reason to undergo a comprehensive examination. The cause of the unpleasant odor may be diabetes and kidney disease.

Stool smell

Perhaps the most unpleasant is fecal odor from the mouth. Neither the patient himself nor those around him can ignore it. If this is your first time encountering such a problem, remember whether you had wild garlic, onions or garlic on your table. These products can create real hell for those around you.

If several days have passed after consuming them and the smell remains, you should sound the alarm. The smell of feces from the mouth may be the first symptom of diseases of the nasopharynx and upper respiratory tract, tuberculosis, and disorders of the salivary glands. This is the smell that can be heard from experienced smokers and people who abuse alcohol.

Only a doctor can identify the exact cause of the problem. And sometimes, to eliminate bad breath, you will need to undergo a full examination.

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Treatment

Help before diagnosis

Lifestyle, nutrition and hygiene skills play a major role in the treatment of halitosis. To eliminate the physiological causes of unpleasant odor, you need to brush your teeth 2 times a day for at least 3 minutes, and do not forget to clean your tongue of plaque. For oral hygiene, it is necessary to use dental floss and refreshing rinses. To quickly freshen your breath, you can use sugar-free chewing gum.

You need to reduce your consumption of garlic and onions, reduce the amount of spicy meat dishes and red wine. It is advisable to limit your daily coffee consumption to 1-2 cups. Available foods to freshen your breath include apples, carrots, green leafy vegetables. Doctors advise giving up smoking, since the unpleasant smell of cigarette tar cannot be eliminated by any means.

Conservative therapy

If halitosis occurs against the background of drug-induced xerostomia, it is necessary to discontinue or reduce the dose of drugs. There are no specific medications to eliminate unpleasant odor from the mouth. Therefore, therapy comes down to getting rid of its cause. Most often, a person requires qualified dental care. After sanitation of the oral cavity, halitosis disappears.

For gastrointestinal diseases, not only etiotropic treatment is carried out, but also the use of enzyme preparations. Enzyme replacement therapy normalizes digestive processes, eliminates stagnation and fermentation of food. Thanks to this, your breath becomes fresh. For ENT diseases, etiopathogenetic therapy is selected. Emergency conditions are treated in intensive care units.

Treatment of halitophobia is primarily aimed at normalizing the patient’s psycho-emotional state. Psychotherapy sessions are recommended, mild sedatives and tranquilizers are used. People with apparent halitosis are prescribed general measures: careful care of the mouth and teeth, monitoring diet, limiting alcohol consumption.

What diseases cause bad breath?

Trying to diagnose yourself is a thankless task; the range of diseases that can manifest themselves through bad breath is too wide.

Dental diseases

This is the first thing that comes to the mind of a person who has once discovered a problem. Indeed, the most common cause of a pungent odor is caries. Food debris accumulates in carious cavities and pathogenic bacteria multiply. Inflammation of the soft tissues of the oral cavity will also be a real gift for such microorganisms:

gingivitis;
periodontal disease;
periodontitis.

Those patients who periodically turn to dentists for teeth cleaning know that removing tartar is always accompanied by an unpleasant odor. The rest do not even suspect that entire colonies of bacteria accumulate in the interdental space.

Harmless, at first glance, plaque slowly but surely turns into tartar, which not only causes an undesirable odor, but also creates periodontal pockets. Gradually going deeper, they expose the roots of the teeth. The teeth themselves become loose and subsequently fall out.

To avoid such a scenario, preventive visits to the dentist should become the norm for every patient. And if you have bad breath, you should not postpone your visit to the dental center for more than a few days. If the doctor does not identify problems with teeth and gums, you will have to look for the cause of halitosis from other specialists.

Diabetes

If the teeth are healthy and the breath smells of acetone, the therapist will immediately refer the patient to an endocrinologist, because this is how diabetes mellitus usually begins to manifest itself. With this pathology, glucose does not enter the body's cells, but accumulates in the blood. The cells, in turn, feel energy hunger. To saturate them, the body rapidly breaks down fats and proteins, which leads to the production of acetone.

The diagnosis can be confirmed by a urine and blood test, which will certainly contain ketone bodies. Ignoring the smell of acetone on your breath can lead to hyperglycemic coma and even death.

Liver and gallbladder diseases

Gallstones, cholecystitis and bile stagnation make themselves felt by the appearance of bad breath. Usually in this case the smell is not so strong that the patient pays attention to it. He is much more worried about the bitter, unpleasant taste in his mouth, as well as pain in the right hypochondrium, often radiating to the back.

However, the “liver” smell is easy to recognize: it is sweetish, and somewhat reminiscent of the smell of raw liver. When it becomes putrid, the organ has ceased to cope with its functions, and it is likely that the patient will be diagnosed with hepatitis or cirrhosis. To establish a diagnosis, an ultrasound must be performed and a blood test taken for bilirubin and liver enzymes.

Thyroid

An unpleasant odor may also appear due to disturbances in the functioning of the thyroid gland. An increase or decrease in its functions is observed in 2% of the population of our planet. Diseases of this organ begin almost imperceptibly and proceed without any special manifestations. One of the first alarm bells is the smell of iodine coming from your mouth.

Kidney diseases

You can suspect problems with the kidneys by bad breath, which clearly resembles urine. In this case, we can talk about a violation of protein metabolism. Metabolism is disrupted, and the end products of protein breakdown are excreted through the lungs. The ammonia odor is intense, although no toxins are detected in the exhaled air.

Gastrointestinal problems

Accompanied by heartburn, belching and pain in the epigastric region, an unpleasant sour breath almost always indicates diseases such as gastritis or a stomach ulcer. Problems with the intestines are also possible, for example, dysbiosis (disturbance of the microflora), which often occurs while taking antibiotics and other medications.

Pathology of the respiratory system

A putrid odor can be caused by diseases of the respiratory system such as:

enlarged adenoids;
tonsillitis;
chronic sinusitis;
angina;
sinus inflammation;
bronchitis;
purulent otitis;
pneumonia.

An unpleasant odor indicates that an inflammatory process is in full swing in the body, which requires urgent medical attention.

Important! Regardless of the cause of bad breath, once the disease that caused the symptom is completely cured, it completely disappears. This is why it is so important to determine the cause of halitosis, and not try to mask the problem with air fresheners.

Diagnosis

For self-diagnosis, use dental floss.

It is quite easy to determine whether a person has a problem with bad breath, even at home. Objectively, it is best to use another person for this, who will tell you the result.

You can use dental floss to detect plaque by running it along the tooth. Take a closer look to see if a yellow coating has formed on it, and after 30 seconds, sniff. The aroma that appears will be the result.

Medical institutions use special devices that are designed to detect the amount of unpleasant substances in exhaled air. To more clearly identify the root cause of halitosis, the following methods are used:

examination of the oral cavity for inflammation, caries and redness;
blood test to detect inflammatory processes in the body and increased sugar levels in diabetes;
urine test to detect problems with the renal system;
examination of the gastrointestinal tract and liver in the form of ultrasound and gastroduodenoscopy;
inspection of the lingual dorsum.

The doctor must take an anamnesis. As you can see, one dentist cannot make an accurate diagnosis, since the reasons may not only be dental problems, so an otolaryngologist, pulmonologist and gastroenterologist often come to the rescue.

Unpleasant smell in the morning

During sleep, all processes in the body, if they do not freeze, then occur much more slowly than during wakefulness. This also applies to the work of the glands responsible for the production of saliva. But this process is one of the most important factors in the fight against bad breath.

During sleep, the volume of saliva production decreases significantly. It becomes insufficient to protect teeth and gums from pathogenic bacteria. As a result, after a few hours of sleep, the concentration of microorganisms increases several times, and their waste products create a not very pleasant odor.

The human oral cavity is home to a huge variety of bacteria. Depending on the species, they can cause the smell of cadaverine and hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan and putrescine. In other words, during the night a whole “bouquet” of terrifying aromas accumulates in the mouth, which makes morning kisses far from the most romantic.

Pharmaceutical preparations for bad breath.

Pharmacies offer a number of products to help cope with unpleasant odors. Before purchasing, be sure to check that they have antibacterial properties, regardless of the type.

lollipops will easily freshen your breath for a couple of hours due to their antiseptic properties, which help destroy even bacterial membranes;

balm contains chlorhexidine, which destroys all bacteria, and essential refreshing oils will make your breath fragrant;

spray has antimicrobial properties, refreshing the oral cavity and simultaneously providing a disinfectant effect.

Other causes of unpleasant odor

In addition to the reasons already listed, strong breath can be caused by:

Poor nutrition
. Namely, consuming large quantities of dairy and meat products. Such a diet radically changes the acid-base balance, which serves as a favorable environment for the development of microorganisms that cause an unpleasant odor. You can reduce its intensity by simply adding foods containing carbohydrates to your diet.
Hormonal disbalance
. Any hormonal “swing” immediately affects the quality of saliva. It becomes more viscous, loses oxygen, which in turn contributes to the appearance of stench.
Smoking
. Fans of this addiction should know that the mucous membrane of their oral cavity becomes dry. And with dry mouth comes an unpleasant odor.
Poor quality hygiene products
. Incorrectly selected brushes or pastes can also be the culprit of the problem. The ideal choice is maneuverable brushes with normal stiffness and a mobile head.
Insufficient oral care
. The process of brushing your teeth should occur at least twice a day: in the morning and before bed.
Dentures, veneers, crowns, and even piercings
can also become activators of bad breath. All these items require careful care, as bacterial plaque and food debris constantly accumulate around them and under them.

Treatment of bad breath

Osostomy is a serious problem that requires an integrated approach. Therefore, do not be surprised if your dentist recommends using several treatment methods at once:

Scrapers
. There is nothing much more effective than constantly cleaning the surface of the tongue. Ideally, after every meal. This will help significantly reduce the number of bacteria growing in your mouth.
Rinse aids
. They deal with bacteria much more effectively than chewing gum. But to feel the effect, you need to rinse your mouth for at least 30 seconds.
Toothpastes and gels
. A properly selected toothpaste or gel for cleaning teeth is already half the guarantee of getting rid of odor.
Toothpicks.
The systematic use of these sticks helps to get rid of food particles stuck in the interdental space.
Toothbrushes
. Dentists all over the world recommend using ultrasonic brushes, whose bristles are capable of cleaning the most inaccessible places.
Flosses
. Dental floss is becoming increasingly popular. This is an excellent tool for cleaning the interdental space, which leaves no chance for bacteria.

All of the above methods will be effective only in one case: if there are no teeth damaged by caries in the oral cavity, and the gums are healthy. Therefore, the first thing to do if an unpleasant odor occurs is to undergo complete dental treatment.

Methods of treating and getting rid of odor

Modern dental treatment methods enable patients to maintain oral health. New materials, drugs, technologies are based on the use of computer technology and digital radiology. Today, lasers are often used and ozone is used to treat the affected areas of the masticatory organs. Sanding is often done with air.

Therapy for bad breath involves identifying and eliminating the cause of the disease. A specialist can determine the provoking factor. Since more than 65 percent of problems relate to diseases of the oral cavity and poor hygiene, you should visit the dentist on time. It is necessary to thoroughly clean the crowns, spaces between units, and tongue. For this purpose, dental floss, rinses, and tongue brushes are used. You need to choose the right toothpaste and use fluoridated products on the advice of your dentist.

Folk remedies

Traditional medicine can also cure halitosis. Moreover, in her arsenal there are no fewer tools than a dentist can offer. Thus, rinsing the mouth with water and adding a few drops of propolis tincture gives good results. For the same purpose, you can use an infusion of dried apricots, mint or strawberries.

It is quite effective to consume anise seeds daily on an empty stomach. And if you couldn’t find them, you can easily replace the anise seeds with two apples. The main thing is to rinse your mouth with warm water first.

After each meal, it is useful to eat half a teaspoon of grated ginger. But this recipe is not suitable for those patients who suffer from gastrointestinal diseases. In this case, it is better to simply chew or eat a couple of basil leaves. If bad breath is caused by sinusitis, traditional medicine recommends moistening cotton balls with celandine infusion and inserting them into the nostrils for 10 minutes. It will also be useful to replace store-bought rinses with decoctions of chamomile, sage or calendula.

Prevention

The best prevention of halitosis is following all the rules of hygiene: choosing the right brush and toothpaste, brushing your teeth and tongue twice a day, using floss and rinses, and regular visits to the dentist. In addition to these procedures, it is important to ensure that the diet is balanced and the intake of fluid into the body is sufficient.

Which doctor should I contact?

If an unpleasant odor appears, the first step should be a visit to the dentist. This doctor will be able to help in the vast majority of cases. If no problem is detected, it is the turn of a nutritionist and gastroenterologist. Most likely, in this case, you will have to take additional blood and urine tests. Depending on the results obtained, a specific specialist will treat the problem: for problems with the thyroid gland - an endocrinologist, for kidney diseases - a urologist, for pathologies of the respiratory system - an ENT specialist or a pulmonologist.

You can get rid of an unpleasant odor only by establishing an accurate diagnosis. Therefore, if the problem persists longer than 2-3 days, it’s time to start an examination!

Author: Elena Kopylova Dentist-therapist, endodontist. Work experience more than 8 years.

The information is for reference only. Before treatment, consultation with a doctor is necessary.

What do different types of smell mean?

Unpleasant odors are caused by several types of volatile compounds produced by anaerobic bacteria. They use food debris on the tongue, between teeth and in carious cavities as a nutrient medium. Depending on the predominant compound, the character of the odor changes. Some of them suggest the pathology that caused halitosis:

sour aroma – stomach diseases, gastritis or ulcers;
feces, rotten cabbage - oral pathology, caries;
smell of urine - kidney failure;
the smell of ammonia or rotting apples – diabetes;
rot, rotten meat - esophageal diverticulum.

You can find additional symptoms that will accurately indicate the cause of halitosis. If you have stomach pathology, you will experience pain between snacks. Diabetes mellitus is accompanied by excessive urination, dry mouth and thirst. Caries may not appear for a long time, but in advanced forms toothache appears.

Given the variety of causes, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of halitosis can be performed by doctors of different specialties. You need to see a dentist to get rid of dental diseases, but in other cases you will need to consult an endocrinologist, therapist or nephrologist.