It is an unpleasant odour. It is a common name for the condition called HALITOSIS. Sometimes a persons bad breath can blow you away and the person might not realize there is a problem. It is a very embarrassing problem for many.

Exact status of bad breath is difficult to ascertain for any individual. This is because the oral cavity is connected to our nose by an opening which is present in the back of our mouth in soft palate. Our nose has the capability to filter out and ignore background odour, it filters out and ignores our own breath. So a person might have bad breath but may not be aware of it.

There are millions of bacteria living in the mouth , particularly on the back of the tongue. The mouth's warm and moist conditions are ideal for the growth of these bacteria .

MORNING MOUTH:

Some types of bad breath are considered to be fairly normal and arenot of health concerns. This occurs because of the changes in your mouth while you sleep. During the day ,saliva washes away the decaying food but there is less saliva at night. So our mouth becomes dry at night and the food debris and dead cells remain attached to our tongue and teeth and inside of our cheek. When bacteria use these cells, they produce odour.

WHAT CAUSES BAD BREATH:

· Poor oral hygeine: Improper brushing and flossing allows the food to decay in the mouth and produce bad odour.

· Infections in the mouth: like gingivitis(inflammation of gums), periodontitis (advanced gum disease) ,abscess(pus ) can lead to bad odour.

· Respiratory tract infections: Throat or sinus infections, lung infections, polyps, foreign body.

· External agents: Like onion , garlic, coffee, cigarette smoking, tobacco chewing.

· Dry mouth or Xerostomia

· Systemic illness: Diabetes, kidney disease, lung disease.

· Psychiatric illness: Some people believe that they have bad breath ,but others may not notice it. This is called as PSEUDOHALITOSIS.

· Dental decay