04.16.08
The Link Between Low Carb Diets And Bad Breath
Have you recently embarked on a low carb diet? Noticed a sudden change in your breath from ‘not bad’ to ‘really rank’?!
Well, it might surprise you to learn that there’s actually a link between low carb diets and bad breath.
Low carb eating plans such as the Atkins and South Beach Diets typically work by restricting the amount of carbohydrates a person can eat. Instead, people on these types of diets tend to eat more foods containing protein.
Carbohydrates are the fuel that give our bodies energy, but when we don’t have sufficient stores to use our bodies begin to burn fat stores – a process known as ketosis.
When your body’s in a state of ketosis it uses up far more water than it would normally require and this can leave you quite dehydrated. This dehydration in turn leads to less saliva in your mouth thereby creating the ideal breeding ground for oral bacteria, which are the most common cause of halitosis in the majority of people.
In addition, there are certain things that can aggravate these bacteria which are responsible for bad breath when present in unusually high amounts.
Eating lots of protein is one such factor. These bacteria in your mouth play an important role in breaking down proteins in the foods you eat. During this process they give off sulphur compounds which are normally relatively unnoticeable, but when lots of compounds are released bad breath is a common occurence.
So, if you eat a higher than normal amount of protein, more sulphur compounds are given off, increasing the likelihood of your breath smelling foul.
To learn more about the link between low carb diets and bad breath and what to do about it, you might find this other article helpful.
5 Bad Breath Home Remedies To Steer Clear Of
Nowadays more and more people are choosing to fight bad breath using less conventional methods of treatment.
While some particular home remedies for bad breath have been reported as being extremely successful, there are however others which members of the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) have recommended should be avoided at all costs.
These include:
1. Chewing Gum
It’s essential to have a good supply of saliva in your mouth to keep oral bacteria – the main cause of bad breath – in check.
Whilst chewing gum can indeed help to increase your salivary flow, its effects are however limited to temporarily masking any bad smells and your smelly breath will soon return after a short time.
Instead, the best way to ensure an adequate supply of saliva is to stay properly hydrated by drinking approximately 8 glasses of water a day.
2. Mints
Excessive consumption of so-called fresh breath mints can actually have the opposite effect as you risk developing tooth cavities, themselves a cause of bad breath.
3. Mouthwashes
As our other article explains, mouthwashes which contain alcohol can actually dry your mouth out quite severely, in turn creating exactly the type of conditions that oral bacteria love and thrive in. And unfortunately more bacteria means more chance of smelly breath.
4. Mint Chew Tobacco
You might think that chewing on smokeless tobacco is less harmful to your health than smoking an actual cigarette, but in actual fact it can be just as dangerous.
It can increase your risk of losing the fibers and bones that hold your teeth in place, as well as causing your gums to recede. And it can also contribute to the risk of developing oral cancer.
5. Rinsing With Kerosene
This particular home remedy should be avoided at all costs as it can severly burn your mouth.
Likewise, you should also always steer clear of using cleansers used for household cleaning as they may contain harmful chemicals.
For more information on what not to do, check out the AAP’s website.
Why Mouthwashes May Not Cure Your Bad Breath
If you suffer from bad breath one of the very first things you may be tempted to do is reach for the nearest bottle of mouthwash to try and get rid of that awful stench coming from your mouth.
But did you know that many regular mouthwashes may not actually cure your halitosis? And in fact, they could make the problem even worse!
Research studies suggest that most mouthrinses are only really effective in masking the symptoms of bad breath temporarily, and don’t actually tackle the root cause of the vast majority of bad breath cases – i.e. oral bacteria.
When these bacteria are present in normal amounts, there’s not usually a problem. But when they multiply in excessive numbers, halitosis can occur.
The reason why mouthwashes can actually make your breath smell even worse is that most of them contain quite large amounts of alcohol – as much as up to 25% in some of the leading brands.
Alcohol is a dessicant, i.e. a drying agent. When you take a swig of your mouthwash it may initially nuke some of these oral bacteria but then it quickly causes your mouth to dry out, in turn creating exactly the kind of conditions the bacteria flourish in, and so the vicious cycle continues…
Instead of settling for a temporary burst of minty freshness, you might be better off looking at ways to actually tackle these bad breath bacteria if you’re serious about getting rid of halitosis for good.
If you’re interested in learning more, www.cure-your-bad-breath.com has lots of articles on this particular issue, as well as info on other types of treatments such as herbal and cheap home remedies for bad breath.
Why The Colgate 360 Is More Than Just An Average Toothbrush
An essential weapon in the fight against bad breath is a really good toothbrush.
Given that the number 1 cause of bad breath is oral bacteria that we all have in our mouths, cleaning your teeth properly and thoroughly has never been so important.
But with so many different products now on the market, each promising the very best results, how do you know which one to choose?
A good place to start might be with the Colgate 360 toothbrush.
This is a relatively new product which claims to ‘revoluntionize oral care’. So how exactly does it intend to fulfil its claims?
Well, the Colgate 360 has some unique special features not typically found on other regular brands. These features, it says, allows it to give your mouth an all-over deep clean. And this is especially important given that over 80% of all oral bacteria are not found on your teeth, but are instead lurking away in other hidden areas of your mouth such as on your tongue and in your cheeks.
The Colgate 360’s features include:
1. Multi Functional Bristles - a combination of extended outer bristles and closely-packed centre bristles are believed to be more effective in removing more of the plaque found between your teeth and along your gum line;
2. Polishing Cups – Colgate claim that these help to hold toothpaste against the surface of your teeth for longer than a regular toothbrush, in turn maximizing the effectiveness of the paste;
3. Tongue and Cheek Cleaner - the Colgate 360’s unique tongue and cheek cleaner gently cleans the inside of your cheeks, as well as helping to loosen odor-causing residues of your tongue;
4. Raised Cleaning Tip – the raised cleaning tip tackles those harder-to-reach places such as the back of your mouth and in between your teeth where oral bacteria like to hide.
The Colgate 360 toothbrush is now available in a range of 3 different manual models – the Colgate 360 Original, the Colgate 360 Sensitive and the Colgate 360 Deep Clean. There is also a battery-operated model available to purchase as well.
Why The Number 1 Cause Of Bad Breath Might Just Surprise You
You might well think that bad breath is mainly caused by the foods that you eat. After all, as anyone who’s ever enoyed a nice spicy curry will testify, your mouth hardly smells of roses afterwards!
Or perhaps you think that most bad breath is the result of some kind of medical condition, for example problems with your stomach or intestines. Or maybe you just simply think it’s the result of not brushing your teeth properly every day.
Well, you may be surprised to hear that in actual fact the #1 cause of bad breath is bacteria that we all have – and need – in our mouths.
Indeed, research studies estimate that these bacteria are responsible for over 90% of all bad breath cases. So while there are a small percentage that are the result of a serious medical condition, most cases of halitosis are caused by these common oral bacteria.
In regular amounts, these bacteria plays a very important role in our bodies’ digestive processes by breaking down the proteins in the foods we eat. They are also responsible for helping us to digest diseased oral tissue and dead cells in our mouths.
When these bacteria come into contact with certain amino acids in foods, certain sulphur compounds (known as Volatile Sulphur Compounds) are given off. Normally the smell from these sulphur compounds is relatively unnoticeable, but when the bacteria are present in unusually large amounts, the smell can quickly turn rancid and rotten leading to halitosis.
However, the good news is that there are certain things that you can easily do to regulate these bacteria and avoid them multiplying out of control, which in turn should get rid of your bad breath problem.
One particular report we’ve found online which looks at these simple steps is The Bad Breath Cure Revealed. It also offers advice on cheap and easy home remedies which can help banish bad breath once and for all.
