Your Topeka dentist oversees all aspects of your oral health, including how your breath smells. Learn the reasons behind bad breath, or halitosis, and how to get to the root of them.
How bed breath happens
Don’t ignore your bad breath. It may be coming from aromatic foods or from poor hydration. It may also indicate a serious dental health problem. So, don’t be embarrassed about it. Consult Dr. MIchael E. Michel for the cause and solution.
Strong-smelling food, smoking and neglected oral hygiene commonly cause bad breath, or halitosis. Numerous food choices smell very strong (onions and garlic, as examples). Their residues form sticky plaque on teeth, gums and your deeply grooved tongue. If not removed by brushing and flossing twice a day, halitosis becomes more pronounced, affecting those around you. Tobacco smoke lingers, too, discoloring teeth and even burning the top layers of soft oral tissues.
Also, your Topeka dentist says if you neglect brushing and flossing, you will get bad breath. Dry mouth, or xerostomia, results from oxygen therapy or a stuffy nose, creating bad breath, varying degrees of gum disease (gingivitis and periodontitis) and dental cavities.
Reddened, swollen and bleeding gums are signs of periodontitis. Plaque and tartar harbor harmful bacteria which attack gums and cause halitosis, bone and deterioration, tooth mobility and tooth loss.
The bacteria is linked to systemic diseases such as Type-2 diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, dementia, stroke, high blood pressure and pregnancy complications. So, when your Topeka family dentist finds a persistent breath odor problem, he wants to uncover its causes and eliminate them so oral and systemic health both thrive.
Other things which cause bad breath are:
- Liver or kidney dysfunction
- Acid reflux
- Colds, flu or pneumonia
- Sinusitis and post-nasal drip
Solving halitosis
The team at your Topeka dental office helps individuals have fresh breath and of course, the best oral health possible. As such, they highly recommend these practices to all their patients:
- Brushing twice daily and flossing once a day to eliminate plaque
- Brushing soft oral tissues, especially the tongue, because it collects food residues and bacteria
- Cleaning dentures thoroughly by brushing after meals and soaking them in an ADA-approved product overnight
- Drinking 8 glasses of water daily to rinse away food particles and increase saliva and the enzymes it produces
- No tobacco use
- A diet high in fibrous fruits and vegetables
Finally, get semi-annual dental exams and hygienic cleanings at your Topeka dental office. Dr. Micheal E. Michel and his staff teach all their patients the importance of oral hygiene, nutrition, antibacterial mouth rinses and other ways to alleviate halitosis.
Get to the root of halitosis
Contact Michel Dental, and book your semi-annual exam and cleaning. The clearest path to fresh smelling breath is vibrant oral health.