Every body dreams of fantastic smile but this smile can turn to horrible one if accompanied with bad breath. it is not necessary that bad breath is a sign of oral or general disease condition, it also can present in healthy people. it is like any other body odor  caused by bacteria. These bad odors is the result of bacterial fermentation of food debris and beverages which produce volatile sulfur compounds which is the main cause of bad odor.

But also bad breath can be the first significant sign of some general diseases like diabetes for example so such complain should be taken seriously and carefully investigated.

Causes of halitosis or bad breath:

oral and dental causes:

A- Medical illness or diseases:

1-bad oral hygiene: persons with bad oral hygiene tend to have bad breath due to decompositions of food debris by oral bacteria.

2-Gum disease: persons with gingival or periodontal diseases like pockets or gingival inflammation tend to produce bad breath.

3-pus formation due to dental or gum abscess also are a main cause of halitosis.

4-teeth cavities hold food debris for long time which helps bacteria to ferment food and produce sulfur compounds that cause the bad smell.

5-false teeth if not well fitted can also cause bad odors also removable dentures can cause bad odors if not kept clean.

6-Tongue is usually covered by thousands of small papillae that help in taste recognition and protect the tongue from friction with food, sometimes these papillae become longer than usual so the tongue surface become rough and hold easily bacteria, food debris and the resultant sulfur compounds for long periods.

7-blood oozing from inflamed gums can also fermented and cause unpleasant odor.

B- Morning breath:

upon waking up in the morning  due to less saliva production and lack of normal cleansing mechanisms of the mouth  like swallowing or ventilation.

C-smoker’s breath:

heavy smokers develop unpleasant mouth odor .

D-mouth breathing due to nasal or sinus problems can cause mouth dryness that lead to bad breath.

E-some types of food, drinks or medications can be excreted in saliva or excreted from the lung causing a bad odor like onion and garlic.

Non oral causes:

1-Infection of nose,nasal sinuses or throat can cause bad breath due to bacterial growth.

2-infection in the lungs,bronchi or lung abscess especially with production of pus is also a major cause.

3-kidney diseases: especially in renal failure the mouth becomes dry and the breath may have a urine like smell as the excretion of urea is from salivary glands .

4-advanced liver diseases can cause also a sulfur odor.

5-uncontrolled diabetes can cause acetone like odor.

6-stomach and digestion problems is also very common in producing bad breath.

7-psychological factors may be a cause of less oral care so bad breath.

Treatment:

• routine dental service which covers oral hygiene, caries treatment and tartar removal.
• fix the causes of food impaction like bad dentures, bridges.
• using tooth brush and interdental floss is mandatory.
• tongue brushing can really surprise you.
• periodic dentist visits.
• proper cleaning of the removable dentures with tooth brush or denture cleaners.
• chewing sugarless gum which stimulate the salivary flow and a cleaning action.
• treatment of any general medical conditions that mentioned before.

at the end we wish you wonderful smile with pleasant odor’.

Dr R. Nagaty

my lovely wife