What Causes Bad Breath?
Nobody likes bad breath. You might be aware that you often have bad breath and be self-conscious about it, or perhaps you don’t realize it at all. This is one of the worst aspects of having bad breath — that you often can’t tell when you have it because you can’t easily smell your own breath. The medical name for bad breath is halitosis, and some people can even have it chronically. Here are some underlying causes of bad breath to help you identify what could be the problem.
7 Reasons Why You May Have Bad Breath
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Smoking
A guaranteed way to have bad breath is to regularly smoke, whether it’s cigarettes, cigars, or pipes. Not only does the tobacco itself smell bad, it can cause conditions like gum disease which introduces even more foul odors.
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Eating pungent food
This one is fairly easy to realize, since it is obvious that strong-smelling food will transfer its odor to your mouth when you eat it. But, other milder foods as well can cause bad breath, since the breakdown of any food particles increases the bacteria in your mouth.
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Neglecting dental care
Do you brush your teeth after meals? Floss regularly? How about visit the dentist every six months? If you neglect basic dental care, you should expect to have bad breath. By not brushing daily, you won’t clean up bad-smelling food particles or scrub off bacteria from your teeth and gums — all of which causes bad breath.
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Taking certain medications
A side effect of many medications and supplements is bad breath. They can either cause your mouth to get dry or cause your body to have certain reactions and release foul-smelling chemicals.
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Having a dry mouth
Your mouth naturally cleans itself and dislodges food particles using saliva. So, having a dry mouth already puts you at a disadvantage. A dry mouth is also the culprit of bad breath in the morning when you wake up. Some people can get a chronic dry mouth from diseases or saliva gland malfunction.
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Infections
If you’ve recently had a procedure done in your mouth such as wisdom teeth removal, the wound could become infected and give off foul smells. Also, smaller infections like mouth sores can be responsible for causing bad breath.
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Diseases
Upper respiratory sicknesses can cause your breath to smell bad, as well as metabolic disorders like acid reflux or heartburn.
How can you make sure that you don’t have chronic halitosis? The key lies with building up good oral care habits. Once you’ve regularly practiced brushing your teeth, flossing, drinking lots of water, and regularly visiting your dentist, your chronic bad breath should go away. If your halitosis persists, there is likely another underlying problem, such as an infection, disease, or side effect of certain medication. In this case, you will want to speak with your doctor and dentist to identify the issue.
Do you need to find a good dentist? Look no further than Eddie Orobitg, D.M.D. to take care of your dental needs. For over 20 years he has treated the Leesburg community with quality dental care and procedures. Schedule your appointment today by calling 352-787-5919.