Bad Morning Breath

Bad morning breath is something that we all experience, if not every day, at least on some mornings. You wake up, yawn, and realize that your mouth tastes like a garbage can. You know it's imperative to get to the bathroom before interacting with any other human being - a toothbrush and a bottle of mouthwash probably await you there. There's comfort, at least, in knowing that everyone else goes through the same thing and understands the problem. There's comfort also in the fact that, when bad breath occurs only in the morning, it's much easier to deal with than breath odor that persists throughout the day.

Treating morning breath is much easier when you understand what is causing the odor. Like other types of halitosis that originate in the mouth, morning breath is caused by bacteria in the mouth giving off bad smelling gases, called volatile sulfur compounds (VSC). These bacteria are normal inhabitants in the mouth - almost everyone has a few of them. In small numbers they're not a problem; it's when they gain the upper hand that trouble happens. Bad morning breath is a result of bacteria that have multiplied and produced VSC throughout the night.

The morning is a worse time for bad breath because the mouth remains relatively quiet while we are sleeping. The flow of saliva slows down and we don't swallow as much; we aren't eating and drinking so we don't tend to flush the mouth out as much. The tissues of the mouth become drier as a result of all this, and there is a decreased supply of oxygen to the oral cavity and tissues. Bacteria that cause bad morning breath are anaerobes - they do much better in the absence of oxygen, and they are otherwise held in check by saliva, which has antibacterial properties. Treating morning breath requires the reversal of the processes that were happening while we slept: provide oxygen, flush away bacteria, and get the saliva flowing again.

Doctors and dentists recommend good oral hygiene as a starting point for treating morning breath. Brush and floss your teeth, and clean your tongue before going to bed. Rinse the mouth out thoroughly. Upon waking, repeat these steps, particularly if you notice bad morning breath. A good mouth wash may be helpful as well, and to get saliva flowing, specialists recommend sugar free gum. (Don't use gum with sugar in it because not only does this contribute to tooth decay, but sugar supports the growth of the oral bacteria that you are trying to get rid of.) Underlying all good oral hygiene is regular professional care - see you dentist and doctor regularly and deal with any oral health concerns promptly before they become serious and chronic. If you do all this and have a healthy mouth, you should have minimal trouble with bad morning breath

Alcohol and Bad Breath

The relationship between alcohol and bad breath is one of contradictions. On the one hand, we are told that drinking alcohol can cause bad breath, while at the same time, a number of commercial mouthwashes and rinses sold for the treatment of halitosis contain alcohol as an antibacterial ingredient. To deepen the confusion, scientific evidence backs up both claims: consuming alcohol can contribute to bad breath; adding it to mouthwash can have a demonstrably beneficial effect. How do we explain the contradiction?

Part of the explanation is that alcohol is a drying agent; drying agents and bad breath go hand in hand, because drying agents - alcohol, tobacco, and some drugs - cause saliva to evaporate and may even cause a decrease in the flow of saliva through the mouth. This is a bad thing for breath because saliva not only continually flushes and cleans the mouth, it also contains antibodies and antiseptic substances, which fight off organisms that can cause infection or produce offensive odors. People who suffer from a dry mouth often have halitosis too, whereas people with a healthy flow of saliva are less likely to develop bad breath. In social situations, many people notice that they have a dry mouth when they have consumed alcohol and bad breath goes along with that scenario, if only temporarily.

Research confirms the connection between drying agents and bad breath. Studies have shown that as saliva dries in the mouth, increasing amounts of volatile sulfur compounds (VSC) are released and expelled, causing worsening bad breath. This also at least partially explains the phenomenon of "morning breath," because saliva flow is decreased during sleep and the mouth is often dry upon waking. With alcohol and bad breath, the situation is often made worse by the addition of tobacco and food odors, which can be drying agents and sources of short term halitosis in their own right.

Other research paints a different picture of drying agents and bad breath: saliva also contains bacteria, and lots of sugars and proteins that the bacteria can break down, producing VSC. Experiments with saliva have shown that it breaks down and produces putrid odors if left to sit (another good reason to keep it flowing through at a healthy pace). The bacteria in saliva, in other words, can be source of halitosis. Alcohol is antibacterial and antiseptic, which explains the other side of alcohol and bad breath: alcohol kills bacteria that come in contact with it, so alcohol added to mouthwash does indeed tend to bring about an improvement in breath odor.

Clearly, combining alcohol and bad breath products can be effective, at least in the short term, but it comes at a price. Perhaps it's a price we don't need to pay: there are other effective products for fighting halitosis that don't have the unfavorable side effect of causing it as well.