Halitosis, A.K.A, "bad breath" is something that everyone can relate to, at least every morning. But if your breath continues to offend throughout the day 24/7/365, then you may want to keep reading.
First of all, get with your dentist and make sure you don't have periodontal disease or any other type of underlying infection.
There are 6 areas of the body to investigate.
Teeth and gums: Book an exam with your dentist. Rule out periodontal disease and infections.
Sinuses: Sinuses can harbor bacteria and yeast. Excessive mucus will clear up for most people within 3-6 weeks when they switch to a Paleo type of eating program. Sinus problems can also be the source of post-nasal drip that can aggravate the bad breath issue. A 1999 Mayo Clinic study showed that Fungus/Yeast may be an underlying cause of chronic sinusitis and a strict Quantum Paleo program will support the condition from a dietary perspective. ( "Mayo Clinic Study Implicates Fungus As Cause Of Chronic Sinusitis." ScienceDaily, 10 Sep. 1999)
Throat: Chronic sore throat, tonsils, adenoids, coated "yeasty" tongue can all be the culprit. As you build health and clean up your diet these areas will improve. See the peroxide gargle tip below.
Digestion: Eating clean, healthy food is the key. Eliminate junk, additives, artificial sweeteners, dyes, coloring, transfats,grains, dairy and sugar.
Elimination: You must work towards moving your bowel daily, if not 2-3 times per day (optimal). A lot of bad breath issues will clear up once the person gets a handle on their underlying constipation.
Toxicity: Smoking, chewing tobacco, alcohol, foods and snacks with colors and chemicals are all items that can give you bad breath. Many pharmaceutical medications can dry out your mouth as a side effect. All of the above items can contribute to bad breath.
Very few patients have ever come into my office for a consult to discuss bad breath. They come in to lose weight, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, digestive disorders, natural hormone balance, etc. My intake paperwork filled out by the patient will sometimes clue me to the fact that halitosis may be a problem.
I always suggest to my patient to clean up their diet. I recommend that they try to go 3 weeks with zero grains, sugar and dairy.
It not only cleans up the body but helps you break the bad habits very quickly. I call the process, Restarting the Computer.
I often hear a patient remark that their halitosis clears up during the 21 days!
When you get the gut working correctly, the rest of the body benefits.
Getting off of sugar and grains are the main reason.
Here are some solutions and ideas to try.
1 Dentist- get checked.
2 Peroxide Gargle. Household hydrogen peroxide (3% solution). You can either do it straight up, or cut it 50:50 with water. Don't swallow. Gargle and spit it out. Then rinse your mouth out, and repeat. It will foam up a lot. But keep with it. Do this 2-3 times per day for a month. Then make a decision on the results.
3 Digestive enzymes with each meal. I prefer ones with Betaine HCl, it will have it on the label. This will help digest proteins especially and undigested proteins can putrefy and cause bad breath.
4 Start drinking water as your only beverage. No sugar drinks, no soda drinks. Just water. Drink a minimum of 2-3 liters per day. Dehydration can also cause bad breath.
5 Apple cider vinegar. 2 Tablespoons in 8oz. of H2O, 2-3 times daily for a month. This is an oldie but goodie. It will help digestion as well as so many other areas of your body too numerous to list.
Did I mention that the diet is important?
Dr. Doug
