Clean Mouth

The key to avoiding bad breath is to have a very clean mouth. This means clean, not just in the sense of brushing and flossing, but also in the sense of controlling the growth of bacteria on the teeth, gums, and tongue. For many people, regular brushing and flossing, and yearly trips to the dentist for professional cleaning, will do the trick, But for others, the process is more complicated.

Step one for a clean mouth is to develop great oral hygiene habits. Brush with a good toothbrush after every meal. It should be a soft bristle toothbrush so it will not damage your gums. Brush for several minutes, if you can, to remove as much plaque from the surfaces of your teeth as possible. Brushing with a toothpaste that contains fluoride is a good choice, as fluoride has been shown to strengthen tooth enamel and help prevent tooth decay. At least once a day, floss your teeth to be sure that no food is caught between them.

Next in your clean mouth routine is your tongue, and this is particularly important if you re having trouble with breath odor. Most of the bacteria that cause the offensive odor we associate with bad breath live at the back of the tongue: scrape the surface of your tongue gently but firmly to remove as many of them as possible. you can do this with your toothbrush, or with an inverted teaspoon, or you can buy a tongue scraper specially designed for the task.

If you're doing all this, you already have a relatively clean mouth; however, there may still be too many odor producing bacteria in your mouth to prevent bad breath. You can reduce their number further by using a good antibacterial mouthwash. Many mouthwashes have one or more ingredients that kill oral bacteria. Some are chemical antibacterials, like disinfectants, while others are marketed as natural remedies, which are either derived from natural products like herbs or olive oil, or simply aim to change the conditions in the mouth to make it an unfriendly place for the odor producing bacteria.

Too many odor producing bacteria in the mouth lead to a foul odor on the breath, so when you find that you have pleasant smelling breath once again, you'll know that you have achieved a truly clean mouth.