What are the causes of halitosis? Well, there are almost too many to mention, and that can sometimes lead to a great deal of confusion when it comes to finding a proper solution for your particular issue.
But the reality is that nearly 90% of these problems and symptoms have a common base, making treatment much more attainable then others may have led you to believe.
Here is a list of some of the most common causes of Halitosis. Do you fit into any of these categories?
Medical:
- Sinus infections
- Tonsil infections or tonsilloliths
- Diabetes
- Certain foods
Dental:
- Periodontal (gum) disease
- Dry Mouth – can be caused by numerous medications
- Oral conditions resulting from post-nasal drip or discharges
- Allergy conditions
Despite all the different things that can cause halitosis, most of these issues create problems for you in the same way – they all create a large amount of anaerobic bacteria in your mouth.
Now keep in mind that these bacteria are supposed to be in there in “normal” amounts, because they help us with digestion by breaking down the proteins that are found in certain types of foods, and in diseased or “broken-down” oral tissue.
What happens when you have one of the above conditions (or many others, the list above was shortened in the interest of brevity) is that these bacteria begin breaking the proteins down too quickly, the result is and odorous or “bad tasting” sulfur compound that is released in the back of the throat and tongue.
Again, these bacteria aren’t the “bad guys”. It’s perfectly normal to have them in your mouth – we all do. You can’t “catch” halitosis from someone else. They are part of your normal oral flora, and they can’t be removed by brushing, tongue scraping, or any other method.
At this point, the most effective method of stopping Halitosis in its tracks is to attack the bacteria’s ability to overproduce this foul smelling compound and convert it into an organic salt that is void of both taste and odor.
There are a number of ways to approach this. Your best bet is to find a product that goes about eliminating the causes of halitosis, instead of simply masking the odor. This isn’t useful in the long term, as the masking agent simply disappears after a short period of time and the bad breath returns.
Or even worse, the masking agent (store bought gums and mints for example) isn’t enough to overpower the halitosis, leaving others in close proximity to you with a stomach-turning aroma of cinnamon and foul breath!
Since there are numerous causes of Halitosis, treatment can be approached from many different angles. But only by attacking the problem at it source will you be able to eliminate your bad breath for good, instead of just trying to hide the problem.