What Your Bad Breath Can Tell Our Family Dentist

In our family dentist office, we know that bad breath can mean several things.  In addition to telling the world what you put on your sandwich, your breath can be an indication of your health.  Most parents realize early on that bad breath can be a sign that their child has a fever or is getting sick. Still many people don't make the connection between how breath smells and oral health.  As a dentist, we know that if you have a health issue it will very often manifest itself in the form of severely bad breath.  In fact, this is one way that the body can warn you of a problem. 

For example, bad breath is often caused by dry mouth.  This is a condition that is common in the elderly and diabetics.  Dry mouth happens because your body isn't producing enough saliva to keep your mouth moist.  Saliva is the natural way that your body rinses away the plaque and bacteria from your mouth.  When your breath starts smelling stale, it is a sign that you need to drink more water and by doing so, your breath will naturally smell fresher.

Another cause of bad breath is a tooth infection.  In our family dentist office, our goal is to keep our patients in good oral health so that they will not experience any discomfort. If you monitor how your breath smells and schedule an appointment when it changes, we may be able to catch a tooth infection early enough to treat it before it causes irritation.  This is in your best interest.  If, however, the infection has grown, we can still look at performing a root canal to remove the infected area and restore the tooth to good health.

Bad breath is also a common symptom of gum disease.  This common condition can lead to significant challenges for oral health because as the disease advances, the gums may begin to pull away from the tooth structure.  When the tooth is exposed, it is susceptible to an attack and bone loss often occurs, as a result.  Bone loss can lead to future tooth loss so this is one condition that we want to identify and treat as early as possible.  Fortunately, when we do catch gum disease early, it can be treated with a deep cleaning.  In this procedure, we remove the plaque and tartar that has become trapped in between the tooth and gum tissue.  Once removed, the gums will naturally start to heal themselves, your oral health will improve, and your breath will smell fresher.

If none of these are the problem and you still have persistent bad breath, you may simply need to have your teeth cleaned.  While you may be the most fastidious of brushers, there are some areas that are simply too difficult to reach with at-home care alone.  This often leads to a buildup of plaque and tartar that can produce an odor.  By completing a thorough cleaning, we can help your breath to improve significantly.  Pay attention to your breath and call our family dentist office to schedule your teeth cleaning and exam if it starts to stink.