Despite the fact that halitosis and bad breath are precisely the same thing, many people choose to make a distinction between the two. Some of us like to think that something like halitosis is some condition that requires medical treatment while bad breath is seemingly caused by less severe factors and is therefore simple for us to treat ourselves. The simple fact remains that halitosis and bad breath are both describing the same condition but there are different degrees of the condition which need to be examined as chronic halitosis may signal the existence of a more serious medical problem.
Short term halitosis is something that we all experience from time to time and there are a number of potential causes, including food getting stuck in between our teeth and putrefying. In most cases, this is transitory halitosis as the food will eventually be collected via our own saliva or eliminated during normal oral hygiene. While food is a common source of minor halitosis, it is far more common for us to get the condition from a dry mouth, which can have a number of causes:
- Smoking
- Consuming Alcohol or Caffeine
- Diuretic diet such as Atkins
- Medication
- Excessive exercise
- Stimulants
None of the above activities or products will be the true halitosis cause but they all contribute to a dry mouth. Bad breath problems and a dry mouth go hand-in-hand because saliva is the body’s natural defense against anaerobic bacteria, the real causes of halitosis.
Human saliva is rich in oxygen and anaerobic bacteria does not live in well-oxygenated environments. Plaque and tartar are both problems because they create barriers between the anaerobic bacteria and the saliva which can neutralize them. Excessive brushing or the use of mouthwash products with alcohol or other products known to cause dehydration actually worsen bad breath problems because they deprive the body of the saliva it needs to naturally keep the harmful bacteria in check.
Far too often, products and consumers will differentiate between halitosis and bad breath. Halitosis products tend to include agents to kill off the bacteria causing the problem. Those products marketed for “bad breath” problems, on the other hand, tend to focus on masking the problem with flavors and additives. In some cases and when the halitosis problem is caused by a dry mouth, the bad breath mints will naturally remedy the problem by stimulating salivation. In others, where a rotten tooth or gum disease is causing the problem, bad breath products only mask a growing medical issue and actually making matters worse. True halitosis treatment in such cases will involve killing off the infection caused by the gum disease or tooth decay-no amount of salivation will accomplish this and thus bad breath mints are only delaying the inevitable and making things worse by masking the foul breath.
Once you understand that bad breath and halitosis problems are caused by bacteria, it is a lot easier to choose products to address the problem. While halitosis problems caused by periodontal disease or tooth decay will need medical attention to ultimately resolve, any products made with natural antiseptics will be more beneficial than something that merely “smells nice”. Remember, although halitosis and bad breath are the same exact thing-that does not mean that companies are making products that accomplish the same thing.
