How to overcome bad breath

The mouth is a very essential part of the body and as such should be properly taken care of.  As a human, it is necessary to take care of the body, including the mouth often described as gateway to the body.

The mouth has a lot of functions because it contains many other organs – such as the teeth, tongue, and the ducts of the salivary glands and they all work together to aid in the ingestion and digestion of food.

Hence, the mouth, when not properly taken care of, could lead to mouth odour or bad breath and even tooth decay. Unfortunately, many people do not know that they have mouth odour or bad breath.

Causes of bad breath

The causes of mouth odour occurs when the individual does not brush his or her teeth after eating, or make use of dental floss at the end of every meal. Many find it difficult to adapt to such hygienic practice because they do not know that such negligence could result into health problem.

Some foods can cause mouth odour, like certain food spices.  To prevent tooth decay is to brush out the smaller particles left in between the teeth.

Poor dental hygiene also causes bad breath. The inability of an individual to brush or floss leaves a film of bacteria in your teeth. With the tongue being part of the mouth also traps bacteria and if not washed away, transcends the bacteria directly to the blood system and also the body as a whole. Some bacteria actually protect the teeth and the gums but could also lead to tooth decay and bad breath.

Dehydration or the lack of water in the body seems to produce bad breath due the fact that the amount of food stuck in between the teeth and the gums are not washed away, hereby producing bacteria in the process. The use of water (H2O) helps a great deal in preventing bacteria from feeding from the leftover food found in your mouth. Most people ignore the importance of water in the body and it has also been proven that water fights bacteria and also prevent mouth odor or bad breath. To avoid bad breath, it is a necessity to drink lots of water after the intake of food into the system.

To prevent bad breath or mouth odour there are certain steps that can be used to avoid being embarrassed by the public and at the same time encourages an individual to stay healthy by adapting to personal hygiene.

Dentist, Dr Shola Adeoye, said that persistent bad breath was sign of poor oral hygiene. She gives a tip one how an individual can know if he or she has bad breath. She said “One way to check if you have halitosis or bad breath is to lick your wrist, leave it dry and smell it, if the smell is bad you know that you have bad breath,”

“The tongue is a primary source of bad breath; when food particles aren’t completely removed from the mouth, they collect bacteria on the tongue and around the gums.

There are simple ways of preventing bad breath or mouth odour.

Prevention

Tips like brushing the mouth at the end of the day will help a great deal in not allowing bacteria to clot in the mouth.

Regular drinking of water will wash away all the tiny particles of dirt or food that is been stuck in between the gums and teeth. This prevents bacteria to feed on them and thereby producing cavity of the teeth and gum disease.

Mint could help in reducing mouth odour but not remove the odour permanently.

To enable an individual continue a good relationship with the public, he or she should be able to follow simple tips of good oral hygiene by protecting the tooth from decay.

Ebele Obi