How to cure bad breath at home

An unpleasant smell from the mouth gives a lot of problems to both its owner and the people around him. A person who smells badly from his mouth is afraid not only to talk to strangers, but even to be near them. This dramatically reduces the quality of his life, interferes with business and personal relationships. What can cause an unpleasant smell and how to deal with it?

Is there any smell

This is a delicate subject, and it is embarrassing for others to say openly that it smells unpleasant. A person himself sometimes gets so used to his own fragrances that he simply does not feel them. How to understand if it smells from you?

1. Put your hands in the form of a mask with your palms to yourself, exhale into them with your mouth and inhale deeply with your nose. If there is a smell, you will feel it.
2. Take a dental floss and clean a couple of dental gaps. With this cleansing all the flavors "go outside."
3. Apply a wet cotton pad to the tongue and cheeks, it will be saturated with the smell that is currently in the mouth.
4. Observe the reaction of the interlocutor, if he involuntarily turns away from you during a conversation, then your oral cavity emits a foul odor.
5. Ask your loved ones directly if you have a bad breath, they definitely will not hide the truth.

In that case, if you feel the smell from the mouth, it may be that others do not feel it. Why? All people have different attitudes to their appearance, someone underestimates tidiness, someone on the contrary is too carried away by it. There are three types of breath odor:

1. Halitosis - a true unpleasant smell. It is the interlocutors who feel it, even if the person himself does not feel it. This is the case when the mouth really smells.
2. Pseudo-halitosis or false smell. There is an unpleasant odor, but it is weak and only the source itself feels it, other people do not feel it. In this case, the person simply exaggerates the problem.
3. Halitophobia or fetid mouth phobia. It just seems to a person that he smells horribly out of his mouth, but in fact there is no smell. It happens to those who are too concerned about the appearance and opinions of others about themselves.

The first kind is really a pathology, the reasons for which need to be clarified and which must be fought. The third type may be evidence of neurosis or illness of obsessive states, such problems are solved exclusively by psychiatrists. The second is that you can leave unattended at all, if it is easier to relate to the situation.

Causes of halitosis

Contrary to popular belief, the smell from the mouth does not always indicate a dental pathology. However, now there is another mistaken idea that halitosis is always due to gastrointestinal diseases. So what makes the smell?

1. Diseases of the dental apparatus. Such dental diseases as caries, gingivitis, stomatitis, periodontitis, periodontitis are the foci of chronic infection in the oral cavity. They support inflammation, which leads to the formation of a foul-smelling exudate.
2. Angina This is an inflammation of the lymphoadenoid tissue of the tonsils. Palatine tonsils suffer more often than others. An acute sore throat is easily recognized due to pain when swallowing, but the smell can also occur due to a chronic process.During such inflammation there is no pain, but purulent foci remain in the tonsils, which produce an unpleasant odor.
3. Non-compliance with personal hygiene. Teeth should be brushed twice a day: in the morning and in the evening. After each meal, mouthwash should be used. Also, dentists recommend every six months to undergo professional teeth cleaning in the clinic. Observe all these rules is difficult, but you can stay at least on brushing your teeth.
4. Bad habits. Smoking not only leads to yellowing of the tooth enamel, but also causes bad breath. This happens because, firstly, the aroma of tobacco in the mouth is not transformed for the better, and secondly, smoking spoils the teeth and causes inflammation in the mouth.
5. Eating a number of foods. The smell from the mouth may appear if you eat fresh onions or garlic. This is a well-known fact, but many are unaware that this smell is persistent and may remain for several days. Flavored chewing gums, mouth rinsing and even brushing your teeth are not able to cope with this specific flavor.
6. Endocrine diseases.Changes in the hormonal balance affect the composition of saliva. Saliva should not only wet the oral mucosa and the food lump, but also maintain a constant acid-base and electrolyte balance. If it becomes viscous or changes its composition, bacteria begin to multiply in the mouth, causing an unpleasant odor. In addition, the saliva itself may acquire a malodorous odor.
7. Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Diseases such as: gastritis, gastric and duodenal ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux, duodenogastric reflux, reduced gastrointestinal motility, intestinal infections - can be a cause of bad breath. However, they are usually accompanied by other symptoms. Abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, nausea, vomiting, intolerance to a number of products, heartburn, belching sour or rotten - all these are manifestations of various diseases of the digestive system and a reason to visit a gastroenterologist.
8. Diseases of the liver, gallbladder and biliary tract. Symptoms of these diseases can be pain in the right hypochondrium, feeling of bitterness in the mouth, problems with the stool, yellowness of the skin and unpleasant smell from the mouth.When they appear, it is necessary to consult a doctor.
9. Orthodontic and dental prostheses. Crowns, plates and braces are hard to clean, as they have a rather complicated structure. However, they often become clogged with pieces of food, which contributes to the proliferation of bacteria and the appearance of smell. The problem will be solved by the observance of the rules of wearing these structures and their professional cleaning by the dentist.
10. Diseases of the nose and paranasal sinuses. Sometimes the smell from the mouth is not associated with food intake, teeth or internal organs. A person suffering from chronic purulent sinusitis, frontal sinusitis, sphenoiditis, ethmoiditis or rhinitis may also have a fetid odor. It occurs due to the fact that the purulent contents of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, flowing down the pharynx, falls into the oral cavity. It is necessary to treat these pathological conditions with an otolaryngologist.

Methods to combat halitosis

How to start the fight with bad breath? First you need to determine whether the problem is really as great as you think. If the smell is really there and is heard by others, find the reason for its appearance.To do this, carefully analyze your diet, habits and subjective sensations. For example, the prevention of colds with garlic is a sure reason for an unpleasant smell. Pain in the abdomen and bitter taste in the mouth are symptoms of damage to the internal organs.

If nothing that clearly indicates the reason comes to mind, consult your dentist. If the smell is associated with the oral cavity, the doctor will find its source and tell you what to do next. The general rules for getting rid of an unpleasant smell can be formulated as follows:

1. Sanitation of the oral cavity. This means getting rid of all sources of chronic inflammation. Sanitation is performed by a dentist who treats carious teeth, removes those that cannot be saved, and opens the gum pockets. You should undergo preventive examinations at the dentist at least twice a year to prevent the occurrence of caries.
2. Normalization of power. Unpleasant smell caused by particles of carbohydrates that remain in the mouth. They create a favorable breeding ground for bacteria. To avoid this, you should eat less light carbohydrates, such as chocolate, cookies and other sweet foods.
3. Refusal of foul-smelling foods. This, above all, garlic and onions. It is worth remembering that bad food can be caused by protein foods: meat, chicken eggs and fish.
4. Treatment of chronic diseases. If the smell is caused by pathological processes occurring in the internal organs, the only way to get rid of it is to stop these processes. Treatment should be given to specialists in the field, for example, a gastroenterologist, general practitioner, otorhinolaryngologist.
5. Personal hygiene. This is the most important way to get rid of the smell. It is important to learn the rules of oral care.

If you need to get rid of bad smell urgently, there are several proven rapid methods. First of all, this is chewing gum. It is necessary to choose those that do not contain sugar and preferably with a mint flavor. Often they can not be used, because chewing gum harm tooth enamel. However, in emergency cases, this method can save the situation. Also parsley will help to remove the unpleasant smell quickly. It is necessary to take one sprig of this plant (the leaves with the stem) and chew it well.In addition, you can rinse your mouth with a glass of warm milk or chew a grain of coffee.

Oral Care

To get rid of the smell and prevent its occurrence, it is necessary to follow the rules of oral hygiene. There are several important nuances:

1. Teeth should be cleaned in a certain order: first, the upper, then the lower, first the front surface, then the back, and only after chewing.
2. It is better to choose toothpaste with a high content of calcium or antibacterial.
3. After each cleaning of the teeth, the brush head should be soaped and left in a glass so that microbes do not multiply on its surface.
4. Brushing your teeth should last at least 3 minutes and should be done at least twice a day.
5. To clean the tongue, you can use the back surface of a toothbrush or a special scraper.
6. After each meal and even after each snack, the oral cavity should be rinsed with a special elixir. It is better to choose the one that does not contain alcohol, but has antibacterial properties.
7. Every day, use a thread to clean hard-to-reach interdental spaces.
8. Every six months, go through a professional teeth cleaning or start a home irrigator to carry it out yourself.

Smell from the mouth is a real problem for those who want to be a full member of society. You can get rid of it if you look after your health, choose the right diet and follow the rules of oral care.

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