Bad breath ( fetor oris or fetor ex ore , fetid halitus , stinking mouth , fetor narium , bad breath ) is a common condition. It disturbs you and those around you. Bad breath and bad breath are different conditions. If your sense of bad breath lasts less than two months, it is not considered a disease, but it is a table that needs to be resolved. Halitosis that lasts for at least 2 months or more can be considered as halitosis. This is important even if you are the only one who feels bad breath. The smell of substances that are taken into the mouth and emit odor, such as cigarettes or garlic, are their own odor and are not bad breath.
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What causes bad breath?
Not all bad breath is disturbed by your social circle, it can happen to everyone to some extent, and this is normal and temporary. There is no need to treat normal bad breath. Everyone may have an odor in the mouth in the morning or it is normal to have a bad breath when hungry. This is called physiological odor and being disturbed by this odor can be considered as halitophobia.
An odor may occur after the protein residues left in the mouth after meals are digested by the beneficial microorganisms in the mouth.
In some inflammatory conditions between the nose and the lungs (such as tonsillitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, bronchitis, sinusitis) there may be bad breath due to malodorous gases produced. After the treatment of these ailments, the smell disappears. Tooth and gum diseases, eating strongly spicy foods, fast dieting and smoking can also be among these reasons.
Bad breath can also occur when large amounts of bad-smelling gases in the stomach come into the mouth due to a looseness between the stomach and the esophagus.
Breath odor occurs when the gases in the blood pass into the lung air. This condition can often accompany another disease. Liver diseases, cancer, metabolic diseases, gout, heart failure, constipation, lactose intolerance, kidney diseases, celiac and Chron’s disease and other similar diseases.
Sometimes, no one can detect your bad breath but you. This could be for many reasons. There is indeed an odor and may not be detectable. Taste-smell perception may be confused. There may be olfactory hallucinations or absent odor perception ( phantasmia) . These states are called self-halitosis .
Perceiving non-existent odor may also be for psychological reasons.
How is bad breath detected?
It may not be enough to measure and evaluate bad breath by smelling. Devices called halitometers are used to understand what your bad breath is . There are more than 3,000 gases in your breath. A meaningful evaluation of one-time measurements cannot be made either. The mouth odor production capacity is calculated by measuring at frequent intervals throughout the day. Sometimes it will be necessary to measure repeatedly, as there may be no odor in your mouth momentarily.
Along with halitosis, nose and breath odor should also be measured.
Sometimes if you have olfactory receptors on your tongue and throat, you may be smelling with these receptors instead of your nose. In this case, you may think that the taste on your tongue is bad breath. Odors may not be detected in tests with a halitometer. Thus, you may have bad breath that cannot be detected all the time. In this case, the cause of your bad breath may be mistakenly evaluated as psychological. For this, the situation should be clarified by performing a taste-smell confusion test.
How can you improve your bad breath yourself?
- Brush your teeth regularly with fluoride toothpaste at least twice a day.
- Clean your tongue and between your teeth regularly.
- Get your dental exam on time.
- If you are using denture materials, keep them clean and remove them at night.
- Gargle in your mouth and use sugar-free mints or gum.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not consume too many sugary foods and drinks.
- Reduce your alcohol and coffee consumption.
Important:
If you have bad breath that does not go away for a few weeks despite the procedures you do yourself, if you have pain or swelling in your teeth, if there is any other problem with your prosthesis, consult your dentist.
If you have bad breath that does not go away for more than 2 months, consult your doctor to investigate and treat the causes.
Some cases of halitosis, which start for a shorter period of time, may indicate a situation that needs to be intervened without waiting, as they may be due to other accompanying diseases or their attacks. In such circumstances, consult your doctor.