Halitosis – Bad Breath is Not Your Friend
I want to talk today about Bad Breath also known as Halitosis.
We have all found ourselves chatting with someone whose breath could easily wilt a flower and with more than 90 million people suffering from chronic bad breath that’s a lot of wilted flowers.
This is definitely not a funny subject for the many people who experience it and it can well be a socially debilitating problem affecting self esteem and confidence.
Many people are unaware that they even have bad breath and just as many think they do have it when they really don’t.
It is a very difficult subject to broach even with those people in our lives that we are closest to. I once actually worked for a dentist that had an acute post-nasal drip problem and some days when he was in my room that putrid rotten-eggs odor was almost unbearable. Even though it was terrible, not one person in the office had the courage to tell him. Go figure!
So………! How do you know if you might have Bad Breath? Have you ever experienced any of the following?
- You frequently have a bad taste in your mouth
- People step back from you when you are talking to them or they avoid direct contact with you
- Somebody has commented on your breath or offered you mints or chewing gum
- You experience a white or yellow film on your tongue
- You have a dry mouth
- You have a post-nasal drip problem
If you answered yes to any of these you might have a chronic bad breath problem. Following is a simple 5 step test to see if you have bad breath
- Lick the back of your hand. Let it dry for a few seconds and then smell. If you notice odor, you probably have a breath disorder.
- Place dental floss between your back teeth, wait a few seconds and then smell the floss.
- While looking in the mirror, grab the tip of your tongue with a Kleenex and pull it out as far as you can. If you see that the very back or your tongue is whitish in color, it may be a sign that you have bad breath.
- Ask the opinion of someone you can trust. Check your breath several times daily because your breath changes throughout the day.
- Find a dental professional who uses a Halimeter. This is a dental device that measures the concentration of Volatile Sulfur Compounds (VSC’s) in the mouth.
If bad breath is affecting your life, stay tuned, when next week, I will give you eight easy tips that can help to sweeten your breath for good.
I love getting feedback from my readers. Do you have experiences you’d like to share? Here on my blog, I offer commentluv. This is really great for other bloggers. By leaving a comment, you can create a link back to your own blog…Great for SEO (search engines). But you don’t need to be a blogger to leave a comment! You can also become a ‘fan’ of my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter. And you can do it all from my blog page!
I look forward to hearing from you,
Kathleen
Hi Aunt Kathlen,
I am a 10-year old girl. I live in India. My neighbors once told me that I should brush three times a day rather than 2 times. I felt it very embarrassing and told mom. She said that “you are lucky that someone told you and if you do not start brushing three times, people will not tell you and run away from you. No one would play with you.” Then what? I started to follow the instructions mom gave and brush my teeth thrice a day. one month has passed but mom still says that I have a bad breath. What should I do now ?
——- Nandini
Hi Nandini,
Thanks for your question, I would certainly like to help you. Has anyone talked to you about brushing your tongue and cleaning between your teeth with floss? I think that rather than brushing three times a day your time would be better spent on flossing as 30% of your mouth is still not clean if you are not cleaning between your teeth.
Kathleen