Bad Breath, also known as Halitosis, is a problem that a lot of people suffer from, although ideally, this is a problem they would rather not have at all! Not only is bad breath embarrassing, it is also a sign of poor health habits. Imagine, dressing your best for a social event but still getting sidelined due to your breath! In this article, I will discuss the remedies for getting rid of bad breath quickly!
As a matter of fact, it is not just human adults and kids, but even dogs, who suffer from bad breath troubles! So if you suffer from foul-breath, take heart, because you are not alone in this!
How to Know If You Really Have Bad Breath: It is difficult for a person to know their own breath, no matter how hard you try; even your nose cannot help you with this! Only another person can tell you if your breath smells foul, but they have to be someone who can be totally honest, with no fear of offending you. Usually, your own family members may not be totally honest about it, but if you have got a kid at home, you could ask him/her if your breath smells really offensive; after all, kids are known to speak out truth, minus any inhibition!
From your point of view, it can be extremely embarrassing for you to ask another person about your breath! Thankfully, there are other ways of knowing whether your breath is really offensive or not!
Method #1: Take a spoon; use it to scrape the whitish material from the back and front of your tongue. Smell this whitish substance; it is fairly indicative of the state of your breath at the current moment!
Method #2: Another way to test your breath is to lick your wrist with your tongue, wait a few seconds for the saliva to dry, and then smell the licked part of your wrist! This too can tell you if you have a good breath or not!
Ways to Get Rid of Bad Breath:
Bad breath is certainly, not the end of the world. There are several methods and treatments available to help you get a more pleasant breath! Some of these options are discussed below:
1. Brush Your Teeth in the Morning: Your breath would be usually foul in the morning, due to a drastic reduction in the amount of saliva that flows in your mouth when you are sleeping. Saliva is what helps clean out plaque and food particles from your mouth which are the very causes of bad breath in the first place; when the flow of saliva in your mouth decreases at the time of sleep (as a result of which, you might experience a dry mouth in the morning), your breath smells really offensive.
In essence, dry mouth can automatically lead to foul breath, which is why you need to keep your body and mouth hydrated all the time by drinking water often! The first thing I would suggest is to drink at least one glass of water as soon as you wake up in the morning; if possible, gargle and rinse your mouth well at this stage – this would help you get rid of some of the foul bad breath. After this, you should brush your teeth well (if possible, use an electric toothbrush for best effects), and again, rinse your mouth thoroughly with water after you are done with brushing; use a tongue scraper and mouthwash too if you can.
Sometimes, food particles can get stuck in-between the spaces of your teeth, which in turn can be the cause of offensive breath. To get around this issue, floss your teeth well during or after brushing – it would remove the offending food particles and plaque from your teeth’s spaces! If you have braces and dentures then you need to take particular care in washing them properly, as conventional brushing may not be enough to keep them clean!
If you don’t have or don’t want to use a regular mouthwash, you should gargle at least once or twice per day with apple cider vinegar!
2. Change Your Diet: Your diet can affect your breath in a major way. If possible, stay away from tea, alcohol and coffee as much as you can; drink lots of water and green tea instead! Strong foods such as raw onions and garlics can make also your breath stinky; instead of these, foods rich in Vitamin C (such as oranges), and natural vegetables should be consumed more frequently!
If you must eat raw onions and garlics at all (they are good for your health, but bad for your breath), then be sure to rinse and gargle your mouth thoroughly with either water or a mouthwash! Chewing on parsley or a mint gum can work wonders too; however, the Xylitol gum is probably your best option – for it not only acts as a mouth freshener but also kills the "foul odor-causing bacteria" inside your mouth!
Speaking of vegetables, there are some which you should absolutely avoid unless you want a foul-smelling odor coming out of your mouth; these include cauliflower, broccoli, radish, etc. You should also try to avoid consuming milk or any other dairy products; milk and milk products leaves a whitish residue under your tongue which matures later to make your breath really bad; instead of consuming alcohol and milk which can mess with your breath, drink more water to help keep your breath clean all the time! Also avoid eating old, stinking cheese; they contain a lot of bacteria that can affect your breath negatively!
Speaking of food, if you want to make sure that you never suffer from foul breath issues, you should brush and floss your teeth, as well as clean your tongue well, after each and every meal! Yes, I know it is a tall order, but if you are really paranoid, this is perhaps the best you can do to ensure a pleasant breath at all times!
3. Stop Smoking: Apart from the health hazards oft-related with smoking, it can also be the cause of foul breath. If you want to live a healthy life devoid of bad breath, then avoid smoking; there are no two ways about it!
4. Have a Health Check-Up Done: Sometimes, certain periodontal diseases and other bacterial infections can be the cause behind your bad breath; usually, such things can be cured with the proper application of over-the-counter antibiotics, but if they fail, you should go for more advanced treatments such as deep cleanings, or visit a dentist! Foul breath can also be caused by diseases such as diabetes, kidney ailments, pharyngitis, bronchitis (especially if you suffer from it often), tonsillitis, gastrointestinal issues, liver troubles, etc. In such cases, you can usually get rid of your offensive breath merely by treating the disease!
If you need more in-depth information on how to get rid of bad breath, [adrotate banner=”5″]