Sweetish smell from the mouth - do not miss the first symptom of a serious illness. Rotten taste and odor from the mouth: causes and treatment of discomfort in women and men

Bad breath is a very common phenomenon among us. The reason for this is various diseases of the digestive system.

Bad breath is also a problem when communicating with other people. Modern medicine calls this condition when a person’s breath smells extremely unpleasant - halitosis. In Latin - Halitoz.

In fact, halitosis cannot be called an independent disease; rather, it is a sign of pathological processes occurring in the body. In the absence of proper oral care, the bad odor intensifies, causing discomfort not only to the patient, but also to others.

In this article we will look at why bad breath occurs in adults, what are the main causes of this symptom, and how to get rid of it at home.

How to check if your breath smells?

Many people who have unpleasant, repulsive breath are not even aware of the problem. It’s good if a loved one or friend points it out. But this is not always possible, relatives are afraid of offending their loved one, and colleagues prefer to reduce communication with him to a minimum. But the problem remains.

There are several ways to test yourself:

1. Wrist test. Here it will be enough to lick your wrist and let the saliva dry. The smell you will smell after a few seconds is the smell of the front of your tongue. As a rule, it is much weaker than what it really is, because the front part of the tongue is cleaned by our saliva, which contains antibacterial components, while the back part of the tongue, in turn, is a breeding ground for unpleasant odors.
2. You can also try breathe into your palm and instantly smell what you exhale. Or try sticking out your lower lip, pushing your jaw forward a little, and roll your upper lip inward and exhale sharply through your mouth, then smell what you exhaled.
3. Spoon test. Take a teaspoon, turn it over and run it over the surface of your tongue several times. There will be some white residue or saliva on the spoon. The smell coming from them is the smell of your breath.

Additional signs include the formation of plaque on the tongue, inflammation of the mucous membrane, and a feeling of unpleasant taste in the mouth. These symptoms do not directly indicate halitosis and may vary depending on the cause of the disease and the presence of complicating factors.

Causes of bad breath

The causes of halitosis can vary significantly, but before you look for them, you need to make sure that this smell really exists. Modern doctors distinguish several types of halitosis:

1. True halitosis, in which unpleasant breathing is objectively noticed by people around. The reasons for its occurrence may be related to physiological characteristics, insufficient oral hygiene, metabolic processes in the body, or be symptoms of certain diseases.
2. Pseudohalitosis is a subtle unpleasant breath that can be felt upon close contact with a person. Usually in such a situation the patient exaggerates the problem and it can be solved quite simply by increasing oral hygiene.
3. Halitophobia is a person’s belief that his breath smells, however, this is not confirmed by either the dentist or the people around him.

Also according to statistics:

• 80% of the causes of bad breath are related to problems in the oral cavity.
• 10% with ENT diseases.
• only 5-10% with serious diseases of internal organs and systems - liver, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract, respiratory system organs, hormonal imbalances, metabolic disorders, autoimmune and oncological diseases.

The most basic thing to understand is that the main cause of the unpleasant odor coming from a person’s mouth is the activity of anaerobic bacteria (that is, bacteria that grow and multiply without access to oxygen). Their waste products - volatile sulfur compounds - are those very smelly gases that smell very unpleasant and lead to bad breath in humans.

Why does bad breath occur?

But there are many reasons that lead to the proliferation of these bacteria. We will analyze them in detail:

1. Poor oral hygiene. Most often, putrid breath is associated with poor oral hygiene, for example, when a person does not use dental floss to clean the interdental spaces from food debris. Surely many of you have felt the stinky breath of co-workers who had a snack at work but did not brush their teeth.
2. Gum diseases(and periodontitis). The cause of these ailments is poor oral hygiene, soft microbial plaque and hard tartar. When the amount of toxins secreted by plaque and tartar microorganisms exceeds the capabilities of the local immunity of the oral cavity, inflammation develops in the gums.
3. . Carious dental defects are filled with a huge amount of pathogenic microflora and there are always food residues left in them. This food and tooth tissue quickly begin to rot and as a result, your breath smells bad. If you want to eliminate bad breath, first of all you need to treat your bad teeth.
4. Tartar development– dental plaque, which seeps in mineral salts (calcium salts) with its hardening and the development of chronic infection in it. More often, tartar is the result of gum pathology (gum pockets), which do not tightly cover the necks of the teeth and the spaces between their lateral edges.
5. Digestive system diseases( , ). In this case, this problem is caused by the pathology of non-closure of the esophageal sphincter, when odors from the stomach penetrate directly through the esophagus into the oral cavity.
6. . Those who suffer from chronic inflammation of the tonsils also have bad breath. If you have a weak immune system or there is a lot of infection in the oral cavity, then in this case periodic inflammation of the tonsils can develop into a sluggish chronic form of inflammation. People who suffer from this form of inflammation of the tonsils often complain of terrible breath.
7. - an inflammatory disease that is accompanied by the formation of ulcers on the oral mucosa. Ulcers and thick white plaque are the source of halitosis.
8. - an inflammatory process in the membrane of the tongue, which can occur together with gingivitis or stomatitis.
9. Intestinal pathology(enteritis and). As a result of inflammatory processes in the intestines, toxic substances penetrate into the blood, which the body removes, including through the lungs, as a result of which bad breath appears.
10. Another common cause of halitosis is dry mouth: saliva does not moisturize or clean the mouth by washing away plaque and dead cells. Thus, the cells found on the gums, inner cheeks and tongue decompose, causing halitosis. Dry mouth can be caused by drinking alcohol, certain medications, pathologies of the salivary glands, etc.
11. Medications: Many medications, including antihistamines and diuretics, can cause dry mouth, which can cause bad breath. Such odor and treatment are often interrelated - a number of medications can lead to bad odor (insulin, triamterene, paraldehyde and many others).
12. Quite often the cause of bad breath is some products. Of course, onions and garlic are rightfully considered record holders here. However, after noisy feasts with a lot of meat and fatty foods, bad breath may also appear. True, it goes away pretty quickly.
13. Tobacco products: Smoking and chewing tobacco leaves chemicals that linger in the mouth. Smoking can also accelerate other causes of bad breath, such as gum disease or oral cancer.

Whatever the various causes of bad breath, the source of all problems is bacteria. They are always in our oral cavity, creating a certain microflora there. Any living organism, and bacteria are no exception, when feeding, produces waste products, which are volatile sulfur compounds. It is these foul-smelling sulfurous volatile compounds that we smell from our mouths.

Experts believe that one of the most obvious causes of its appearance is the white matter that accumulates on the back of the tongue. It occurs when a person brushes their teeth incorrectly, leaving their tongue unattended.

How to treat bad breath

In case of bad breath, treatment is a separate topic for discussion, but what can be done to prevent it from appearing is important to know even for those who do not suffer from such a problem. After all, bad breath, if it appears, cannot be masked with mint candy.

As noted above, food particles remaining after eating are soil for the growth of bacteria. That is why a lot depends on oral hygiene. It is recommended to take care that after eating food there are no pieces of food left in the mouth, which, among other things, contribute to the formation of plaque and tartar. This requires:

• Brush your teeth with a soft-bristled toothbrush three times a day to remove food particles remaining in the mouth and stuck in the teeth;
• clean the interdental spaces with dental floss;
• clean the back of the tongue daily with a soft-bristled brush;
• to stimulate salivation, regularly eat fresh fruits and vegetables and adhere to a diet;
• to eliminate xerostomia (dry mouth), rinse your mouth with warm water;
• visit the dentist regularly.

At home, rinsing with vegetable oil helps get rid of bad breath. To do this, take a small portion of oil into your mouth and hold it there for 10-15 minutes. Oil has the good property of dissolving all rotting products. Then spit and rinse your mouth thoroughly. You can't swallow this oil! If the procedure is carried out correctly, the oil should become cloudy.

Infusions of herbs such as peppermint, string, caraway, and wormwood have the ability to remove unpleasant odors. To clean the pockets in the gums, it is good to rinse after meals with a 3% solution of hydrogen peroxide, diluted 1:1 with water. Peroxide will clean even the deepest pockets well and eliminate the problem.

In addition, there are a large number of modern means of quickly getting rid of bad breath: aerosol fresheners, chewing gum, lollipops, etc. They are characterized by both rapid efficiency and low stability due to their short duration of action.

Which doctor should I contact?

If you experience bad breath, you need to see a dentist, have your teeth professionally cleaned, treat diseases of your teeth and gums, and get rid of tartar.

If there is no effect, you should consult a gastroenterologist, and also, in rarer cases, an ENT doctor (for sinusitis or chronic rhinitis), a pulmonologist (for bronchiectasis), and an endocrinologist (for diabetes mellitus).

Few people are pleased when, during communication, the interlocutor’s breath emits an unpleasant odor. Anyone can face this problem, and the reasons for such a piquant situation can be very different: from serious illnesses to lack of basic hygiene. Repulsive amber is caused by colonies of bacteria living in the oral cavity: on the teeth, gums, tonsils, tongue - they produce gases, which include sulfur. This is what contributes to the appearance of bad breath. If this becomes a daily problem, you should visit your dentist as soon as possible.

Halitosis is a persistent unpleasant odor, which is difficult to get rid of with the available hygiene products that people use in oral care. This phenomenon often accompanies pathological conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, which do not bother a person. Unpleasant amber can also be caused by problems with gums and teeth. The fear of an unpleasant odor when breathing becomes a real problem for a person, having a negative impact on his life - both personal and social.

How to assess if you have bad breath:

• Ask close relatives if you have this problem and how often they experience it.
• Lick your wrist, wait a couple of seconds for the saliva to dry, and smell the area - this is exactly what your breath smells like.
• You can be examined by a specialist using special equipment.

What are the causes of bad breath:

1. Oral diseases: dental caries, inflammation and bleeding of gums, purulent plugs on the tonsils.
2. Infectious and bacterial infections of the upper respiratory tract: sinusitis, sinusitis, frontal sinusitis.
3. Problems in the endocrine system.
4. Diseases of the stomach, liver, and intestines that cause disruptions in the digestive system.

What else can cause halitosis:

• Fasting and diets. Lack of nutrients contributes to metabolic disorders, and as a result, bad breath appears.
• Stressful situations.
• Hormonal fluctuations.
• Smoking tobacco products. Nicotine, tar, and phenolic compounds have a foul odor and dry out the oral mucosa. The natural protective function of the mouth is disrupted and a number of inflammatory processes occur - this is why a persistent unpleasant odor appears.

How to get rid of bad breath?

There are several available methods that will help you get rid of this problem forever:

1. Make an appointment with your dentist - This specialist should be first on your list if you have been plagued by halitosis for a long time. Dentists always monitor the problem of bad breath, both in research and in practice. The doctor objectively assesses the situation, identifies the causes of the disease and eliminates its sources if they are associated with disease of the teeth and gums. Dental treatment, cleaning from stones and plaque - the problem will be solved! Using dental floss to clean the spaces between teeth and lotions will help solve the problem. There are bacteria that accumulate in huge numbers on your teeth, causing ulcerations, and only a professional doctor can clean them out. Ulcers cause teeth to become brittle and crumble, causing cracks to appear in the enamel and causing an unpleasant odor from the mouth. Caries, rotten teeth, gum disease - these phenomena can cause bad breath.
2. We visit an otolaryngologist - Chronic diseases of the nasopharynx can also cause an unpleasant odor due to foul-smelling nasal discharge. Bacteria accumulate in the sinuses and nose, causing infections. Solution: treat the disease and rinse your nose with saline solution. Do not self-medicate - only an ENT specialist can identify the true problem and prescribe the correct treatment that will bring results.
3. Checking the tonsils - Tonsils are spherical bulges at the back of the throat that resemble prunes. A lot of bacteria accumulate on their surface, resulting in the formation of whitish-yellow plugs, from which an unpleasant odor emanates. The plugs are removed with a special device that injects water under pressure into the tonsils - its name is “Waterpik”. If plugs form constantly, doctors recommend considering surgical removal.
4. We check the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract - Problems with the stomach often cause unpleasant odor from the mouth. Acid reflux occurs when stomach acid and food particles move up through the esophagus. This condition requires medical treatment with antacids.
5. Proper nutrition - Some foods cause unpleasant odors, such as onions, garlic or spicy foods - pieces accumulate in the mouth while eating. Many chemicals in foods combined with garlic are absorbed by blood cells and excreted through the lungs, so breathing itself becomes unpleasant, not sore teeth.

Prevention of halitosis and methods for its elimination

• Doctors recommend brushing your teeth twice a day, for at least 2-4 minutes in different directions, cleaning the chewing surface and massaging the gums. Also, remember to floss to clean out the spaces between your teeth where food particles get stuck. Even the best toothbrush can't get into those hard-to-reach places. Change the brush every three months, or better yet, more often.
• Snacks between main meals should consist of yoghurt, kefir, fruits, vegetables, salads, and not chips and fast food. After a snack, rinse your mouth with a special lotion, and then chew gum for no more than three minutes. Choose quality toothpastes and lotions that do not contain alcohol. Products that contain Triclosan, baking soda and Chlorhexidine are recommended. Rinsing your mouth with warm water after each meal will rid your teeth of food debris.
• In addition to the teeth, it is also necessary to clean the surface of the tongue, since the white coating on it contains bacteria, as well as food debris - together they cause a bad smell from the mouth.

These important rules will help solve the problem and allow you to live a full life without fear complexes!

Bad breath is called halitosis. In most cases, this is one of the manifestations of dental or other diseases, so refreshing products can only mask it for a while.

Poor oral hygiene can increase the odor. Often, such a symptom is a harbinger of life-threatening conditions. Read on to learn more about the causes of bad breath in adults and the treatment of halitosis.

Causes of bad breath in adults

Bad breath caused by pathological causes always has specificity, that is, the same for a particular disease.

Caries and other oral diseases cause the appearance of one type of odor, and stomach and intestinal problems cause another. Doctors distinguish the following types of halitosis:

1. Pathological - it is caused by diseases of the internal organs (extraoral halitosis) or dental problems (oral).
2. Physiological, which is not associated with diseases and is caused by errors in nutrition or lack of proper oral care. This smell occurs when fasting, smoking, taking alcohol or taking medications.

There are also terms such as halitophobia and pseudohalitosis. These conditions are due to psychological reasons. In the first case, there is a fear of the appearance of a smell after an illness; suspicious people are prone to this.

Pseudogalithosis refers to obsessive-compulsive conditions, when a person feels that his breath constantly smells bad - this requires the help of a psychotherapist.

One or another cause of bad breath in an adult determines the nature, or shade, of halitosis. It, in turn, helps to understand where in the body the problem may be localized.

Pathological factors cause seven types of oral odor:

• putrefactive;
• feces;
• ammonia;
• sour;
• acetone;
• rotten eggs.

Putrid odor from the mouth

More often indicates dental diseases and pathologies of the respiratory organs. It may appear due to the accumulation of food debris in a tooth affected by caries or under a denture, due to the inflammatory process. The nature of the odor is due to the decomposition of amino acids under the influence of bacteria.

As a result, volatile, unpleasant-smelling substances are formed. Listed below are common causes of putrid odor.

1. Respiratory tract diseases - sinusitis, sore throat, pneumonia, tuberculosis, bronchiectasis, tonsillitis, allergic rhinitis or bronchitis.
2. Diseases of the oral cavity - dysbacteriosis, stomatitis, periodontitis, caries, diseases of the salivary glands or periodontal disease.

Putrid odor can also be caused by:

• plaque on teeth or tartar due to poor hygiene;
• smoking or drinking alcohol;
• impaired digestion - in this case the smell can be especially pronounced.

Its cause is often localized in the intestines and is caused by dysbiosis, obstruction, decreased peristalsis and food absorption.

The smell of feces from the mouth occurs in people suffering from anorexia or, which is also associated with a violation of the digestion process - food is not absorbed, it begins to rot and ferment.

A fecal odor sometimes occurs with an infectious lesion of the respiratory system.

Ammonia smell from breath

It occurs in kidney diseases and renal failure, when the level of urea, a molecule containing an amino group, is elevated in the blood. Due to a malfunction of the filtering system, the body begins to look for other ways to eliminate this toxic substance - through the skin and mucous membranes. As a result, your breath smells like ammonia.

Smell of acid

Sour breath in an adult is caused by increased stomach acidity, which can be caused by various diseases - gastritis, duodenal or stomach ulcers, pancreatitis.

The sour smell may be accompanied by heartburn and nausea.

Rotten egg smell

It also appears with stomach problems, but in the case of low acidity, as well as gastritis, this can be accompanied by belching and a feeling of discomfort in the stomach. Another cause of rotten egg breath is food poisoning.

It indicates diseases - diabetes, pancreatitis, as well as some other pathologies, which are described below.

There are several pathogenic causes of the smell of acetone from the mouth of an adult. The most harmless of these may be indigestion, but there are serious diseases that cause this symptom.

Diabetes

In advanced forms of diabetes, blood sugar levels are very high. At the same time, a large amount of ketone bodies, which are colloquially called acetone (in fact, these are compounds of the same class with a similar structure), are also released into the blood.

In this condition, the kidneys begin to actively excrete acetone, so a urine test will show its presence. In addition to the kidneys, ketone bodies are excreted through the lungs, which causes the appearance of a specific odor from the mouth.

This symptom requires immediate examination and medical attention, as it is a harbinger of diabetic coma.

Liver diseases

Acetone in the blood and urine can appear in some liver diseases. This organ produces enzymes that break down substances that are toxic to the body, including those that neutralize ketone bodies.

If liver function is impaired, acetone may appear and, as a result, bad breath may appear.

Thyroid problems

A hyperthyroid crisis, a dangerous, sudden condition, can provoke the smell of acetone from the mouth. This is an extreme form of development, in which the production of iodine-containing hormones by the thyroid gland is increased. The characteristic acetone smell also comes from urine.

Other signs of a crisis are agitation, hallucinations, delirium, hand tremors, drop in blood pressure, muscle weakness, tachycardia, vomiting and fever.

Kidney diseases

The smell of acetone can occur with kidney pathologies:

• nephrosis;
• renal failure;
• kidney dystrophy.

Disturbances in the filtering system negatively affect protein metabolism in the body; its breakdown products are not completely eliminated and accumulate in the blood. The smell of acetone on breath also occurs with uric acid diathesis.

What to do if you have bad breath - treatment and medications

Since most often halitosis is only a symptom, the disease that caused it requires treatment. To do this, you need to undergo an examination by passing tests prescribed by your doctor. Depending on the cause, medical or surgical treatment is carried out, for example:

• use of antibiotics or NSAIDs for inflammatory disease;
• removal of tonsils for tonsillitis;
• puncture of the nasal sinuses due to the accumulation of purulent contents in them;
• treatment of carious lesions;
• removal of a diseased tooth or inflamed pulp;
• hyperthyroidism therapy;
• treatment of increased stomach acidity or other pathologies of the digestive system.

Thorough oral hygiene helps reduce the intensity of the unpleasant odor - using a high-quality brush, dental floss, rinses and toothpastes with triclosan, carbamide peroxide, chlorhexidine, cetylpyridine.

You should not use rinses containing alcohol - they dry out the mucous membrane, reducing the volume of saliva produced.

Folk remedies for bad breath

• Rinse your mouth with warm water and essential oils - mint, sage, clove - at the rate of 2 drops per full glass of water. Swallowing the solution is strictly prohibited, and the oils must be of high quality.
• 10 minutes before meals, you can chew dried juniper berries, anise or fennel seeds.
• Tea with rose hips - 1 tbsp. l. 200-250 ml of boiling water, leave for 25-30 minutes.
• You can rinse your mouth with a decoction of sorrel and St. John's wort.
• For indigestion, sea buckthorn syrup, oil or juice are useful.
• For indigestion, tea with ginger and honey, a decoction of chamomile, wormwood or dill seeds, and flax seeds help.
• For low acidity, red and black currants, apples, viburnum berry juice, honey are useful, and for high acidity, carrot or potato juice, a mixture of aloe and honey, a decoction of mint and yarrow.

Any folk remedies cannot be used uncontrollably, and before using them it would not hurt to consult a specialist.

Which doctor should I contact?

You can get rid of bad breath much faster if you do not self-medicate and seek help from a specialist. First, assess your condition and determine if there are other symptoms.

Toothache, bleeding or inflammation of the gums and other problems in the oral cavity are a reason to visit the dentist. Go to him if, apart from bad breath, there are no signs - perhaps you need to remove tartar or plaque accumulated on your teeth.

Sore throat, nasal congestion, wheezing, cough - with such symptoms, go to the otolaryngologist. If there is discomfort in the intestines, constipation or diarrhea, heartburn, stomach pain, visit a gastroenterologist.

If the dentist finds no problems with the teeth and gums, and there are no other complaints except bad breath, then you should go to the therapist - it is quite possible that the existing disease is asymptomatic.

Bad breath is a problem that worries many people, and it is not strange that the difficult period of pregnancy for the body often makes itself felt, among other things, by bad breath. In this article, we will look at the main causes of this phenomenon - both directly related to pregnancy and others, and give you some tips on how to get rid of this problem and prevent it from occurring in the future.

Causes

We will consider both reasons directly related to pregnancy and others, but we will pay more attention to the first, while we will briefly talk about the second. Let's start with them:

• Incorrect or insufficient oral hygiene - obviously, the solution in this case will be to restore normal care of the teeth, gums and tongue;
• A diet rich in sulfur-containing foods (such as garlic and onions) is generally healthy, but to get rid of bad breath you will need to either limit or eliminate such foods from your diet, or brush your teeth or use chewing gum every time after eating;
• Diseases or damaged microflora of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as teeth and gums - to solve the problem, you will have to cure the disease that creates bad breath;
• Alcohol and smoking - it would not be amiss to recall that during pregnancy, tobacco and alcohol must be completely abandoned, as well as caffeine-containing products and various stimulants.

You can find more detailed recommendations on how to combat bad breath in general in the section on home methods for solving this problem. Now let's move on to 5 reasons for bad breath during pregnancy.

1. Unstable hormonal levels

Pregnancy is accompanied by constant changes in the body, which include constant changes in hormonal levels. During this period, the body is exposed to larger than normal doses of estrogen and progesterone, and the side effects of this can be very different.

Thus, the gastrointestinal tract and salivary glands are affected - both of them can lead to the appearance of bad breath. The acidity and a number of other characteristics of the gastrointestinal tract and oral cavity may change, and therefore their microflora, and, as a result, the chemical balance as a whole may change.

2. Lack of vitamins and minerals

The need to ensure the development of the baby’s body at all stages radically changes the required consumption rates of various minerals, vitamins and other substances important to the body. The body has no other way to indicate a lack of these substances except by creating a feeling of hunger. Meanwhile, hunger can be suppressed by food that does not contain those substances that the body is deficient in.

Such a deficiency can also lead to bad breath, for example due to a lack of calcium for tooth renewal and subsequent pathological conditions of the teeth and gums.

3. Dehydration

Insufficient water supply is one of the most common causes of bad breath during pregnancy. It is necessary not only to maintain the usual water regime, which means drinking two liters of water per day, but also to add at least another 0.5-1.5 liters. In addition, it is advisable to drink water directly, and not tea, various juices, etc.

If your body gets enough water, it will have no problem producing enough saliva to control the bacteria that is partly responsible for bad breath.

In addition to drinking water, rinsing your mouth and washing your face several times throughout the day also helps. This reduces the body’s water expenditure and, accordingly, helps to avoid dehydration in the future.

4. Morning sickness

A significant proportion of women - more than 50 percent - experience morning sickness associated with nausea and vomiting. Its peak occurs between the sixth and twelfth weeks of pregnancy. The direct consequence of this is, again, bad breath. After morning bouts of vomiting, oral hygiene procedures should be repeated to avoid the manifestation of the problem we are considering.

5. Slow digestion

During pregnancy, there is a significant slowdown in the processes of the gastrointestinal tract. As a result, significant volumes of gases accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract, which can lead to belching and bad breath. In addition, a diet also contributes, often different from ideal, with bouts of hunger, including at night - although the body requires nutrients, the stomach may not have time to fully digest food. For this reason, it is better to reconsider your diet once again, achieving, if possible, the best balance of nutritional value and ease of digestion.

Treatment and prevention

Most often, bad breath is not a sign of any serious pathology, and to get rid of it, it is enough to follow several preventive measures.

Maintain good oral hygiene. So, in addition to a toothbrush, you should regularly use a scraper or spoon to clean your tongue, as well as dental floss to clean the space between your teeth.

It will be helpful to rinse your mouth several times throughout the day with water, or, better yet, a decoction of one of the herbs such as chamomile, fennel, sage, thyme or even green tea.

You can also learn about ways to combat bad breath in your child.

If, in addition to bad breath, you have other symptoms that bother you, which may be associated with the gastrointestinal tract and oral cavity, or you cannot get rid of it on your own, you should schedule a visit to a specialist in the near future.

About 80-90% of the adult population suffers from bad breath. If in most cases this is a physiological phenomenon that can be eliminated with a toothbrush, then in 25% of patients halitosis is persistent and indicates the development of diseases of the teeth, mucous membranes or internal organs. The problem is not insoluble, but requires examination by specialists. Why does an unpleasant “aroma” appear?

Causes of bad breath

There are two types of halitosis: physiological and pathological. The first type is caused by poor diet and poor hygiene, and the second type by dental problems and diseases of the internal organs.

The main causes of putrid odor:

The appearance of a persistent odor in a man or woman should force the patient to undergo diagnostic testing of the body. In 8% of cases, the cause of the unpleasant taste of rot is diseases of the bronchi, lungs, nasal mucosa and polyps.

Why does it smell rotten?

The occurrence of an unpleasant taste is often associated with personal hygiene. Improper brushing of teeth, insufficient time allocated for morning and evening care, leads to the proliferation of bacteria, the waste products of which are deposited on the teeth, tongue and mucous membrane.

Sometimes a person can identify a problem in the body by the type of smell. So in case of diabetes it smells like acetone, in case of liver failure it smells like fish, and kidney dysfunction is accompanied by a pungent and heavy smell (we recommend reading:). In this case, complex treatment may be required.

Dental reasons

Bacteria that cause an unpleasant odor live on the tongue, between the teeth, and on the gums:

1. The cause of the discomfort-causing “aroma” may be dental caries. Microbes and food debris accumulate in the cavities of tooth enamel, which decompose over time. It is almost impossible to clean holes in teeth using hygiene products.
2. With periodontitis, microorganisms actively develop under the gums, which is accompanied by the release of a sulfurous odor.
3. Other diseases can also be the cause: stomatitis, periodontal disease, dysbacteriosis, dysfunction of the salivary glands.
4. A common problem is improper care of structures - mouthguards, dentures. The accumulation of saliva and food particles leads to intensive growth of bacteria during their use.

Problems with the gastrointestinal tract

Based on the nature of the smell, you can independently determine the problem:

1. Sour smell (we recommend reading:). Appears when the acidity of gastric juice increases. May be a consequence of pancreatitis, stomach ulcers, gastritis.
2. Smell of feces. Appears with intestinal obstruction, dysbiosis, poor absorption of nutrients. “Aroma” can be a concern when the digestive process is disrupted, when foods are slowly absorbed, causing fermentation to begin.
3. Smell of hydrogen sulfide. Occurs with gastritis or decreased acidity in the stomach. It may also be a consequence of food poisoning.

Protein foods contribute to the development of bad breath: meat and dairy products. The substances break down and form alkaline compounds, which change the acid balance in the mouth. Microorganisms begin to actively multiply, causing an unpleasant odor.

Other reasons

The smell of rot can be caused by other factors:

The smell of rot in the breath of a child or teenager

A child or teenager may experience bad breath for a number of reasons. The main factor is the development of pathogenic microorganisms on the tongue or in the tonsils due to an imbalance in the microflora. This occurs due to the appearance of dry mouth, the causes of which may be:

Less common are other factors that cause a putrid taste - the appearance of caries or diseases of the stomach and intestines. The child will need to undergo a comprehensive examination.

Diagnostic methods

To identify the presence of plaque in the mouth that causes bad breath, you can carry out the procedure yourself using a sanitary napkin or dental floss. If there is a yellow coating on the material and an odor appears after 30-45 seconds, you should contact a specialist.

In medicine, various methods are used to identify halitosis and the causes of its occurrence:

If your breath smells like rot, the doctor can analyze your medical history (when did the smell appear, are there any diseases of the internal organs, is the problem related to food intake). An important part of the study is to perform a detailed blood test on a person to determine the level of sugar, kidney and liver enzymes.

The patient undergoes examinations by an otolaryngologist, gastroenterologist and pulmonologist. This will identify diseases of the nasopharynx, as well as exclude or confirm systemic diseases of the liver, kidneys, diabetes, and problems with the respiratory system.

Treatment options

Patients wonder what to do if there is an unpleasant taste in the mouth? Treatment depends on the cause of the problem.

• ENT diseases require a visit to an otolaryngologist; chronic diseases require consultation with individual specialists.
• If the cause of bad breath is diseases of the oral cavity, it is necessary to remove decayed teeth and fill the areas damaged by caries. It wouldn’t hurt to undergo professional cleaning of deposits (tartar, plaque), which can only be done in a dental clinic.

Preventive measures