Bad Breath

What are the causes of your bad breath?

The primary cause of Bad breath is any of the following Dental issues:

• Dental Plaque – Plaque is a sticky film made up of bacteria that forms on your teeth. Deposits of plaque build if there is no proper oral hygiene and leads to bad breath.
• Gum diseases – Build up of plaque leads to gum disease; the bacteria in the mouth gets lodged in the gum pockets and causes bad breath.
• Dental Cavities – Bacteria in your mouth loves to grow inside your cavities where there is sugar and other food particles, thereby causing bad breath.
• Gaps between teeth & food lodgement – Gaps between teeth lead to food lodgement; the bacteria accumulate in the areas of food lodgement, causing bad breath.
• Wisdom tooth infection (Pericoronitis) – Pericoronitis is the inflammation and swelling of gums; it usually occurs in the wisdom tooth region. An erupting wisdom tooth can trap food and is difficult to clean. Bacteria grow in those areas and produce an unpleasant smell.

Apart from the above mentioned Dental issues, there are many other causes of bad breath, such as:

• Improper oral hygiene – VSC’s -Volatile sulfur compounds are the primary source of bad breath. VSC’s are produced by bacteria present in the mouth. Brushing twice every day is therefore essential. If not, plaque( a sticky film made of bacteria) forms on your teeth, causing bad breath. Accumulation of plaque leads to gum disease. Your tongue can also be a trap to bacteria that produce foul odors.
• Uncleaned Dentures – Dentures that aren’t cleaned regularly or don’t fit properly can harbor foul odor-producing bacteria and food particles, causing Halitosis.
• Food lodgement – Accumulation of food particles in your mouth such as onion, garlic may produce a foul odor.
• Smoking- Smokers and oral tobacco users are also more likely to have gum disease, which is another source of bad breath.
• Dry mouth – Saliva acts as a self-cleansing aid; lack of saliva causes foul odor.
• Systemic diseases – Diabetes, kidney, liver, lung, sinus diseases, and GI disorders (GERD) create chemicals within your body that result in bad breath.

 

DIAGNOSIS OF BAD BREATH

Your dentist will smell your breath and rate your Halitosis level and diagnose the underlying diseases, if any present.

Example: Kidney diseases produce a fishy odor. Uncontrolled diabetes may produce a fruity odor.

 

TREATMENT OF BAD BREATH

• Maintaining proper oral hygiene is the first line of treatment for bad breath. Certain oral hygiene measures such as brushing and flossing twice a day will treat your bad breath.
• Scaling and Root planing is the treatment of choice for many patients suffering from bad breath. If deposits of plaque or food lodgement are the cause of bad breath, your dentist would recommend you scaling and root planing.
• Subgingival curettage – If gum disease is the cause of your bad breath, your dentist would recommend you with Subgingival curettage where the root surfaces of your teeth are smoothened and infections in the gum pockets are cleaned.
• Dental fillings – If cavities are the reason for your bad breath, you should get them filled with the dentist to avoid bad breath.
• Impacted wisdom tooth extraction – If pericoronitis is the cause of your bad breath, your dentist would recommend extracting your impacted wisdom tooth to avoid further inflammation and bad breath.
• Maintaining dentures – If you have any existing dentures, clean your dentures regularly as instructed by the dentist.
• Avoid smoking and alcohol.
• If any underlying systemic diseases cause your bad breath, our dentist will refer you to the concerned specialist.