KissMeGoodnight eRomance Series:
My Breath Stinks:
How to Get Rid of Bad Breath...NOW!
( 15 pages )

Proper Tooth Brushing and Tooth Care

Proper way to brush teeth

You brush should be against the gums at a 45 degree angle. Strokes should be gentle in tooth wide increments. Brush each side and the top. Don’t forget to brush your tongue.

Proper toothbrush care

If this topic appears to be another “no brainer” it really is not. Many people do not understand proper care of their toothbrush. Remember, it is an object that enters your mouth daily coming in contact with billions of bacteria not to mention certain instances of contamination by bleeding of the gyms or other conditions.

First of all, never share your toothbrush! There is a huge risk of cross-contamination when this practiced is followed.

Always thoroughly rinse your toothbrush after use and store it brush side up to dry naturally. If a common storage system is used, do not allow the brushes to come in contact with one another.

There are mixed thoughts regarding the storage of toothbrushes in a disinfectant. One school of thought advocates that you can do more harm by storing the toothbrush in the same disinfection repeatedly, thereby creating another possibility of cross-contamination.

Never store your toothbrush in a closed container that can set up a favorable climate for bacteria to form.

Proper way to floss

Use a length of floss 16 to 18 inches in length. Wrap the floss around each of your middle fingers. Slip the floss between your teeth. Form a u shape against the side of one tooth. Beginning at the gum line, use a gentle rubbing motion to remove the particles of food. Repeat with each adjacent tooth remembering to take up the slack so that you are using a clean section of floss for each tooth.

Eat when you are hungry

Avoid an empty stomach. Yep, that’s right! If you don’t eat, your saliva production is reduced. You need that saliva to wash away the bacteria and avoid dry mouth.

Drink lots of water to keep your mouth moist

This can help your overall health as well. If you are drinking bottled water, you may be missing out on a valuable resource. Most community water systems include fluoride in your drinking water.

When you drink bottled water you lose out on that benefit. Don’t forget a home water filtration system. For example, if you are using a reverse osmosis system, all the valuable nutrients are being removed including fluoride.

Add tea to your list of preferred beverages

It is thought that the chemical polyphenols found in tea help to prevent that sulfur producing bacteria that contributes to bad breath.

Cranberry juice

Try drinking cranberry juice or eating cranberries. Plaque is less likely to form because the cranberries reduce the stickiness of the bacteria.

Scurvy

Scurvy? Yes, this may shock you but there are still instances of “scurvy” in the modern world of today. Scurvy is caused by a lack of Vitamin C and can cause the gums to bleed and also manifest as bad breath. Vitamin A is also necessary for the overall health of the gums and teeth. Here is a list of nutrients that can be beneficial for bad breath and the recommended dosage:

Vitamin A: 10,000 I.U. per day
Vitamin B complex - daily
Vitamin B6 - daily
Vitamin C: 1,000 mg. three times a day
Calcium: 2,300 mg. a day
Coenzyme Q10: 30 mg. three times a day
Vitamin E: 400 mg. a day
Folic acid: 800 mcg. a day
Niacin – daily

Dairy products

The holistic healing community suggests that dairy products may contribute to fermentation of food in the stomach. Their suggestion is to eliminate all dairy products for one week and use that as a measure to determine whether your bad breath improves.

Enzymes

Another school of thought suggests using a digestive enzyme after eating each meal. Since necessary bacteria in the digestive system tend to thrive in a more alkaline environment creating that environment artificially may help prevent the fermentation. Try taking a small amount (about 1/8th of a teaspoon) of pure sodium bicarbonate approximately 20 minutes after eating. It may very well improve your digestion as well as help in the prevention of bad breath.

Oral Candida treatment

Also known as “thrush,” candida is one of those yeast (fungal) infections that can be annoying and difficult to get rid of but it can be done.

Begin with removing all refined sugar products from your diet. That includes yeast based products especially. You don’t want to pour “fertilizer” on a yeast infection.

If you have been on any type of antibiotic treatment they may have upset the creation of good bacteria that helps digestion. In this case, you need to encourage the growth of bacteria to offset bacterial loss while taking the antibiotic.

Try taking a “probiotic.” Just the opposite of an antibiotic, the probiotic introduces millions of live bacteria back into your system thereby offsetting the damage done by the anti-biotic.

The most commonly know probiotic is lactobacillus acidophilus. You may have seen L. acidophilus milk in the dairy section of your grocery store. This is milk that has been enriched with the L. acidophilus bacteria. L. acidophilus is also found in yogurt and you can find it in supplemental form at any health food store.

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