What Causes Halitosis and How Can You Treat It?

When you’ve got bad breath, you might not realize it, as it’s difficult to actually smell your own breath. But when people start to drift away from you when speaking or breathing, it’s probably a good indication that you have halitosis (the medical term for bad breath), which is more normal than you may think.

Causes of Halitosis:

Most bad breath starts in your mouth and is usually caused by bacteria. There are many possible causes. They include:

  • Food. The breakdown of food particles in and around your teeth can increase bacteria and cause a foul odor. Eating certain foods, such as onions, garlic and certain spices can also cause bad breath.
  • Tobacco products. Smoking causes its own unpleasant mouth odour. Smokers are also more likely to have gum disease, another source of bad breath.
  • Poor dental hygiene. If you don’t brush your teeth and tongue and floss daily, food particles remain in your mouth, causing bad breath.
  • Dry mouth. Saliva helps cleanse your mouth, removing particles that cause bad odors. A condition called dry mouth or xerostomia naturally occurs during sleep, leading to “morning breath,” and gets worst if you sleep with your mouth open. Gum disease, mouth sores, infections and medications can also cause dry mouth.
  • Other mouth, nose and throat conditions. Bad breath can occasionally stem from small stones that form in the tonsils and are covered with bacteria that produce odour. Infections or chronic inflammation in the nose, sinuses or throat, which can contribute to postnasal drip, can also cause bad breath.
  • Other causes. Diseases (i.e. cancers, metabolic disorders, gastroesophageal reflux disease, etc.) can cause a distinctive breath odor as a result of chemicals they produce.

Treatment of Halitosis:

The best way to improve bad breath is to follow a thorough oral care routine including twice-daily tooth brushing and daily flossing to remove the food particles and bacteria from your teeth, tongue and gums. Keep in mind that mouthwashes only improve bad breath for the short term, and if you have a chronic problem, your dentist may suggest an antimicrobial rinse to help keep bacteria at bay.

How to Prevent Halitosis:

  • Brush after you eat
  • Floss at least once daily
  • Make sure you clean right to the back of your tongue when brushing
  • Clean dentures or oral appliances
  • Avoid dry mouth
  • Try to avoid foods with strong scents that linger, such as onions and garlic
  • Chew sugar-free gum, especially when your mouth feels dry
  • Eat fresh, fibrous vegetables such as carrots, celery and broccoli – they can help clean your teeth and prevent plaque from forming

It can be easy to keep your breath fresh! Practice good dental hygiene, and your mouth as well as the people around you will be thankful you did.

If you would like to learn more, please do not hesitate to give us a call or contact us to book an appointment.

Five Health Issues Caused By Bacteria

Oral health is about so much more than just the health of your mouth, teeth, and gums since your mouth is how most things get into your body. Because the mouth has about six million bacteria particles, it’s important to keep your mouth clean and implement a proper dental regime. Bacteria can have detrimental effects to your oral health. It can get into your bloodstream and cause infection and inflammation wherever it spreads. This is why it is so important to practice good oral hygiene and to see a dentist regularly in order to avoid serious risk to the body’s overall health.

Poor oral hygiene can lead to:

Cavities

According to Colgate, 60 to 90 per cent of people will get cavities (also known as caries) at some point in their life. Cavities are caused by excess plaque and tartar that live on your teeth. Once plaque forms, the acid wears away the enamel, the tooth’s hard outer surface, forming tiny holes in your teeth. These tiny holes or gaps in the enamel are the first stage of cavities. If left untreated, the acid and bacteria will continue to break down the layers of your teeth and start to affect the dentin, a softer layer of tissue under the enamel.

Treatment: The typical treatment for cavities are fillings, but if a tooth is badly destroyed your dentist may opt to remove or cover it with a dental crown.

Gingivitis

Between 50 and 90 percent of adults have gingivitis, which, if left untreated, leads to periodontal disease. Gingivitis is formed when food debris mixes with saliva and bacteria-forming plaque that sticks on the surfaces of teeth. If dental plaque and tartar aren’t removed by regularly brushing with toothpaste and flossing, it can become mineralized and form tartar. Tartar is very hard and can only be removed by a professional dental cleaning.

Periodontitis

Untreated gingivitis can advance to periodontitis. With time, plaque can spread and grow below the gum line. Gums then separate from the teeth, forming pockets (spaces between the teeth and gums) that become infected. As the disease progresses, the pockets deepen and more gum tissue and bone are destroyed. Eventually, teeth can become loose and may have to be removed.

Viral Infections

50 to 80 per cent of all adults in the US carry oral herpes, which is a result of the herpes simplex virus. Oral herpes may cause blisters and ulcers on the tongue or gum, flu-like symptoms or no symptoms at all. Once you are infected, the virus permanently resides in your body. However, with proper care, the infection can stay dormant.

Cancer

Obviously, poor oral health practices such as smoking or using tobacco products can lead to oral and throat cancers, but other types of cancer have also been linked to gum disease. Risk for kidney cancer, pancreatic cancer, and blood cancers is much higher for people who have poor oral health.

Oral health is an indicator of overall health. Taking care to prevent oral health problems like gingivitis and periodontal disease can go a long way toward decreasing the risk for more serious health problems throughout the body.

Warning Signs of Oral Cancer: Are You at Risk?

Cancer is a serious disease and has several different variants,  but oral cancer is particularly dangerous because it’s not always caught early. It can fester for months without producing pain or symptoms you’re familiar with and often when it’s detected it may be too late as the tumours may have already started to grow. According to the American Cancer Society there was about 48,000 people diagnosed with 9,700 of these cases being fatal in 2017, so it’s important to know what oral cancer is and how to treat it.

What causes oral cancer and who gets it?

Although the exact cause of oral cancer is unclear, there are certain lifestyle factors that can put someone at risk for this disease. According to the American Cancer Society, men over the age of 50 are twice as likely to develop oral cancer than women and about 25 percent of the population will still get oral cancer despite the fact they may not smoke and/or drink.

Risk factors for the development of oral cancer include:

  • Tobacco – including cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco, etc.
  • Heavy alcohol consumption
  • Excessive sun exposure to your lips
  • Family history of cancer
  • Certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV)
  • Age  (it normally occurs in people over 40)

How is oral cancer diagnosed?

As part of your routine dental exam, your dentist will conduct an oral cancer screening exam, which is quick, painless and crucial to detecting oral cancer in its early stages.  More specifically, your dentist will feel for any lumps or irregular tissue changes in your neck, head, face, oral cavity,  look for any sores or discolored tissue as well as check for lumps or anything irregular.

Symptoms

According to the Canadian Cancer Society the most common symptom is an ulcer or sore in your mouth and lip that doesn’t go away after treating it. Other symptoms include:

  • white patches (leukoplakia), red patches (erythroplakia) or a combination of red and white patches (erythroleukoplakia) on the lips or in the mouth
  • a lump or growth on the lips, in the mouth or on the tongue
  • thickening of the inner cheek lining
  • bleeding in the mouth
  • niggling earaches
  • loose teeth
  • dentures that no longer fit
  • slurred speech
  • swollen salivary glands
  • swollen lymph nodes in the neck
  • numbness or loss of sensation over the tongue or lips
  • swelling in your jaw
  • voice changes
  • pain when swallowing
  • weight loss

Treatment:

After a diagnosis has been made and the cancer has been staged, treatment may begin and will mostly likely include the work of surgeons, radiation oncologists, chemotherapy oncologists, dental practitioners, nutritionists, and rehabilitation and restorative specialists. Whether you require surgery, a combination of radiation and surgery and chemotherapy, is dependent on the stage of development of the cancer. For those whose cancer is caught at a later stage, the results of surgical removal of the disease may require reconstruction of portions of their oral cavity or facial features.

A regular dental checkup twice a year is an important cancer screening tool. These visits give your dentist the chance to detect any signs of oral cancer in the earliest stages. Visit any of our locations to receive an oral cancer screening and speak to one of our practitioners to maintain optimal health.

If you would like to learn more, please do not hesitate to give us a call or contact us to book an appointment.