Seeing a Dentist or Doctor

Halitosis or simply bad breath is a term used to describe odors coming from the mouth which are noticeably unpleasant. Halitosis, which is derived from the Latin words for breath (hali) and condition (tosis), can be transient and often disappears after brushing your teeth, flossing, and finally rinsing with a certain specialized mouthwash. It can also be chronic, which is a more serious condition that affects some 25% of the population in varying degrees. In some cases, this condition is due to a medical/ systemic condition. It is estimated that this affects 50% to 65% of the population

What causes Halitosis?

Before seeking professional help, it is important to know what causes halitosis. Up to 90% of such cases originate from the mouth. These include poor throat infections, incorrect dental restorations, impacted food, coating on the tongue, gum disease or periodontal disease, and oral hygiene. The other 10% are mainly due to peptic ulcer, lung infections, liver or kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, cancer, and other similar disorders. Therefore it is important to evaluate beforehand if you are having a serious condition and what type of such condition it is.

Diagnosing Halitosis

Researches done suggested that self-evaluation of halitosis may not be easy due to preconceived ideas of how bad you think it should be. On the contrary, you may not be aware of its presence due to the fact that your senses may have already been accustomed to a stimulus, which you are constantly exposed to. Thus if self-evaluation is unsuccessful, the simplest and most effective way to determine the presence of bad breath is to ask a confidant (family member, best friend, etc.). If your confidant confirms that you have a smelly problem, he or she can help you figure out if the odor is coming from the nose or mouth, and whether a particular treatment is effective or not. Several simple and available treatments can be made to get rid of this condition such as cleaning the surface of the tongue gently, taking specialized mouthwashes, maintaining water levels in the body, and maintaining proper oral hygiene to name a few.

Seeking Professional Help

If simple treatments fail and bad breath still persists, you may need to seek professional help to identify if it is a dental or a systemic disorder. Since up to 90% of halitosis cases are attributed to the mouth, seeking dental help may prove to be a wise and an effective way to start. Hundreds of dental offices now claim to diagnose and treat this. They often use some of several widely used laboratory methods for diagnosis. Failure of these dental instrument and examinations to identify the cause of your condition may prove to be an indication of a systemic or medical problem. Your next recourse would be is to seek a medical doctor.

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What is bad breath?

Bad Bbreath symptomes

What causes bad breath