Bad breath (halitosis)
Halitosis is a common problem that occurs in the human population. It can be unpleasant both for the individual and for the people around.
What causes bad breath?
One of the most common causes of bad breath is a disease of the supporting tooth tissue (periodontal disease, various forms of gingivitis) which is caused by dental plaque and poor oral hygiene.
The cause can be carious teeth as well as oral infections (bacterial, viral, fungal) and dry mouth.
In addition, the causes of halitosis can be throat, tonsils, sinuses and respiratory tract infections, diabetes, psychiatric disease, smoking, drugs, food …
How can you check whether you have bad breath?
People sometimes find out late that they have bad breath. In order to control bad breath, you can do the following:
-take a deep breath and cover your mouth with hands. Then exhale and inhale through your nose with your mouth closed to smell your own breath. If there is a suspicion that bad breath comes from the nose, just exhale through the nose.
-lick your hand and let the saliva evaporates from the skin. Once the skin is dry, smell it. If there is bad smell (mostly sulfur compounds), you will feel it on your hand.
How can you get rid of the bad breath?
By removing the cause you will remove the symptom.
It is necessary to visit a dentist who will determine whether the breath originates from the oral cavity. If not, the dentist will refer you to further tests.
Since the most common cause of bad breath is poor hygiene and changes in the mouth as a result of this, it is necessary to deal with it and with carious teeth, and then to maintain oral hygiene properly. In order to eliminate bad breath it is necessary to use adequate tooth brush, thread, interdental brushes and mouth rinses (alcohol free).