For most people, bad breath isn’t a serious issue in their lives, but for those with chronic halitosis, keeping bad breath under control is an everyday battle. The good news is that there are plenty of things you can do on your own to help alleviate your condition. Here are some strategies that you can easily take to help ward off bad breath:
Eating a Healthy Breakfast
In addition to the dietary benefits of eating breakfast, it can also help with halitosis. Breakfast helps dislodge bacteria at the back of the tongue and gets saliva flowing in your mouth to help wash away bacteria that have built up over night.
Maintaining Proper Oral Hygiene
The most obvious thing you can do is make sure that you are brushing at least twice a day, flossing every day, and regularly seeing a dentist. For most people, just doing this will help cut down on the bacteria in your mouth and keep bad breath at bay. For sufferers of chronic halitosis, it’s absolutely necessary in order to keep bad breath at a minimum. Another important practice to remember is to make sure that you’re cleaning your tongue to get rid of bacteria. An antibacterial tongue spray can help fight persistent bacteria on the tongue.
Stimulating Saliva with Gum, Lozenges, or Herbs
While it isn’t advisable to chew gum often, chewing a piece of sugarless gum once in a while will help get saliva glands working and reduce bad breath. If you suffer from Xerostomia, or chronic dry mouth, using specially formulated lozenges is a great way to get saliva flowing. If you prefer to go the all-natural route, chewing on fresh parsley and mint has been used for centuries to alleviate bad breath and is still considered an effective alternative to chewing gum.
Lifestyle Changes
Living a healthy lifestyle is also an important part of managing chronic halitosis. Smoking and eating unhealthy, sugary foods will only worsen the condition or could even be the main contributing factor. Even not drinking enough water, leading to dry mouth, can help reduce bad breath.
Visiting a Professional
There are many things that could be causing chronic halitosis, from genetic issues, to diseases, to medications you may be on. There is even the possibility of a more serious underlying medical issue. Without visiting a breath specialist, you may not be able to identify the source of your chronic halitosis, or even verify that you have chronic halitosis. A professional will help you to identify the cause of your bad breath and outline the necessary steps to take to alleviate it. At the Center for Breath Treatment patients undergo a thorough examination and assessment to determine the extend of their halitosis problem and the causes of their condition.
About the author: Dr. Anthony Dailley is a practicing dentist that specializes in halitosis treatment. He has been practicing since 1981 and graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in Cell & Molecular Biology, and obtained his dental degree from the Pacific School of Dentistry. Dr. Dailley founded the Center for Breath Treatment in the San Francisco Bay Area and conducts research on curing halitosis. Dr. Dailley has also been a founder in a biotech company called NovaBay Pharmaceuticals and on their board of directors from 1997 -2014.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Friday, January 4, 2013
History of Bad Breath Treatment
Humans have been battling bad breath for thousands of years, and the many advances in this field have benefited those with both temporary and chronic halitosis. While technology has evolved, the basic concepts of bad breath treatment have remained similar in some ways. The following looks at the history of bad breath treatment up to the present day.
Ancient Bad Breath Cures
Ancient cultures had many ways of treating bad breath. While some were pleasant, others were downright disgusting. Parsley, still a common breath freshener, was popular with the Romans for use after meals. In the region that is now Iraq, people ate cloves after dining on pungent native cuisine. People throughout the Middle East chewed mastic gum, a tree resin that is still popular today for freshening breath. The ancient Chinese had some of the most bizarre bad breath control. For example, many traditional Chinese doctors recommended chewing crushed egg shells to grind off the plaque and grime that caused oral odor.
Middle Ages and Renaissance Breath Freshening
Doctors in medieval Europe had a powerful arsenal of spices and herbal cures for bad breath. While many treatments were similar to modern halitosis treatments, others were extreme by today's standards. For example, one 12th-century halitosis treatment advised women to use wine as mouthwash following meals and then wipe their teeth clean with a cloth. Later in the Renaissance, a popular breath treatment involved chewing a mixture of pepper, mint and rock salt and then swallowing. By the 1500s, people were beginning to use an early mint mouthwash, which was prepared by steeping mint in vinegar. Other Renaissance breath treatments included rubbing teeth with powders made of burned rosemary and mixtures of sage and salt.
Oral Bacteria Discovered
In the 17th century, Anton van Leeuwenhoek looked through his homemade microscope and observed bacteria living in the human mouth. He also discove
red, through experiments using brandy and vinegar, that not all of those organisms could be eliminated using antiseptics. It became clear that oral bacteria could be kept in check using dental hygiene, but the odors they produced had to be tackled head-on.
1800s Bad Breath Treatment Advances
The 19th century saw the introduction of the first major mouthwash brand, which is still popular today. Listerine was inspired by Joseph Lister, an English Surgeon who was working to create an antiseptic formula to prevent infections associated with surgery. Joseph Joshua Lawrence, the creator of the new mouthwash, mixed alcohol with eucalyptol, thymol and menthol for the treatment of bad breath as well as gingivitis and tooth decay. Mouthwash was soon found on pharmacy shelves everywhere.
Halitosis Treatment in the 1900s
The 20th century saw a huge expansion of the breath mint and mouthwash market, but advances sped up as soon as scientists pinpointed the cause of halitosis. The 20th century saw a huge expansion of the breath mint and mouthwash market, but advances sped up as soon as scientists pinpointed the cause of halitosis. In 1964, Dr. Tonzetich found that the smell usually associated with bad breath was the result of volatile sulfur compounds from certain bacteria. Although these bacteria were understood to be natural, they were clearly a problem when they grew out of control. This discovery changed the landscape of bad breath treatment.
Breath mints and basic mouthwash products remain popular, but consumers can now choose from an array of specially designed products that confront bad breath from multiple angles. Irrigation systems, for flushing bacteria from the sinuses and nasal passages, are effective for many people. BreathGemz, power dual-action breath fresheners, are also popular. Others prefer to use a combination of approaches to fight halitosis from every possible angle. Thanks to modern halitosis research and the comprehensive selection of products offered by companies specializing in bad breath treatment, modern consumers have better chances of ridding themselves of halitosis compared to many others throughout the long, colorful history of this human struggle.
About the author: Dr. Anthony Dailley is a practicing dentist that specializes in halitosis treatment. He has been practicing since 1981 and graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in Cell & Molecular Biology, and obtained his dental degree from the Pacific School of Dentistry. Dr. Dailley founded the Center for Breath Treatment in the San Francisco Bay Area and conducts research on curing halitosis. Dr. Dailley has also been a founder in a biotech company called NovaBay Pharmaceuticals and on their board of directors from 1997 -2014.
Ancient Bad Breath Cures
Ancient cultures had many ways of treating bad breath. While some were pleasant, others were downright disgusting. Parsley, still a common breath freshener, was popular with the Romans for use after meals. In the region that is now Iraq, people ate cloves after dining on pungent native cuisine. People throughout the Middle East chewed mastic gum, a tree resin that is still popular today for freshening breath. The ancient Chinese had some of the most bizarre bad breath control. For example, many traditional Chinese doctors recommended chewing crushed egg shells to grind off the plaque and grime that caused oral odor.
Middle Ages and Renaissance Breath Freshening
Doctors in medieval Europe had a powerful arsenal of spices and herbal cures for bad breath. While many treatments were similar to modern halitosis treatments, others were extreme by today's standards. For example, one 12th-century halitosis treatment advised women to use wine as mouthwash following meals and then wipe their teeth clean with a cloth. Later in the Renaissance, a popular breath treatment involved chewing a mixture of pepper, mint and rock salt and then swallowing. By the 1500s, people were beginning to use an early mint mouthwash, which was prepared by steeping mint in vinegar. Other Renaissance breath treatments included rubbing teeth with powders made of burned rosemary and mixtures of sage and salt.
Oral Bacteria Discovered
In the 17th century, Anton van Leeuwenhoek looked through his homemade microscope and observed bacteria living in the human mouth. He also discove
red, through experiments using brandy and vinegar, that not all of those organisms could be eliminated using antiseptics. It became clear that oral bacteria could be kept in check using dental hygiene, but the odors they produced had to be tackled head-on.
1800s Bad Breath Treatment Advances
The 19th century saw the introduction of the first major mouthwash brand, which is still popular today. Listerine was inspired by Joseph Lister, an English Surgeon who was working to create an antiseptic formula to prevent infections associated with surgery. Joseph Joshua Lawrence, the creator of the new mouthwash, mixed alcohol with eucalyptol, thymol and menthol for the treatment of bad breath as well as gingivitis and tooth decay. Mouthwash was soon found on pharmacy shelves everywhere.
Halitosis Treatment in the 1900s
The 20th century saw a huge expansion of the breath mint and mouthwash market, but advances sped up as soon as scientists pinpointed the cause of halitosis. The 20th century saw a huge expansion of the breath mint and mouthwash market, but advances sped up as soon as scientists pinpointed the cause of halitosis. In 1964, Dr. Tonzetich found that the smell usually associated with bad breath was the result of volatile sulfur compounds from certain bacteria. Although these bacteria were understood to be natural, they were clearly a problem when they grew out of control. This discovery changed the landscape of bad breath treatment. Modern Advances in Breath Treatment
Breath mints and basic mouthwash products remain popular, but consumers can now choose from an array of specially designed products that confront bad breath from multiple angles. Irrigation systems, for flushing bacteria from the sinuses and nasal passages, are effective for many people. BreathGemz, power dual-action breath fresheners, are also popular. Others prefer to use a combination of approaches to fight halitosis from every possible angle. Thanks to modern halitosis research and the comprehensive selection of products offered by companies specializing in bad breath treatment, modern consumers have better chances of ridding themselves of halitosis compared to many others throughout the long, colorful history of this human struggle.
About the author: Dr. Anthony Dailley is a practicing dentist that specializes in halitosis treatment. He has been practicing since 1981 and graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in Cell & Molecular Biology, and obtained his dental degree from the Pacific School of Dentistry. Dr. Dailley founded the Center for Breath Treatment in the San Francisco Bay Area and conducts research on curing halitosis. Dr. Dailley has also been a founder in a biotech company called NovaBay Pharmaceuticals and on their board of directors from 1997 -2014.
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