Why does my 5 year old have smelly breath all the time?

[IlanaK]

I have noticed this for quite a while now and don't understand why. He brushes his teeth after breakfast, but I can still notice smelly breath. We went to the dentist recently, and although I did not mention his breath, she said his teeth were fine. He is generally healthy. He does have a long standing cough (not a virus) whichhis older brother also had for years and eventually out grew. Could it be this? Other than that, could it be a diet thing? He eats well and a varied diet. He drinks only water.

So what could be causing it?

oooh good thread, will watch this as we have it sometimes with our 2 boys

tonsils?

Have it sometimes with my 7yo ds. He had his tonsils taken out.

What are symptoms of needing tonsils taken out?

he may well have a post nasal drip which causes bad breath. Also any stomach problems or constipation can cause it too.

has he started using adult toothpaste?
we noticed that made a diff

anti biotics?

Children with an object stuck up their nose can smell horrific

ie raisin/bit of sponge from bathtime/lego

You dont say what his breath smells of, but a symptom of diabetes type 1 is smelly breath .. kind of like pear drops / acetone ..
We didnt know this when our little girl got diabetes..
Im sure he's fine though xx

I've worried from time to time about an acidic smell from the breath. Not like a usual bad breath smell. Will watch with interest.

ds1 has this too
dentist said his teeth were fine
we got him kids mouthwash and he's been fine since

(sorry - excuse lack of punctuation etc - 1 handed)

as Duritzfan says, it can be a symptom of type 1 diabetes. Just in the interests of any lurkers, other symptoms are:

unexplained weight loss
lethargy
dry skin
odd appetite
stomach pain
grumpiness

later stages: very very thirsty, weeing lots, unusual bed wetting

Thanks everyone. I am faily sure it is neither tonsils, nor diabetes (not that type of smell at all), nor something stuck up the nose. The one thing listed that makes sense is post nasal drip. He is constantly snorting and this is something that seems to plague all my children until they get older. As to toothpaste, he uses one for his age - not very minty as his older brother hates mint. A kiddy mouthwash is a good idea. I will look into that.

It could be a sinus problem then, my DS had chronic sinusitis and his breath smelled bad when he has an a sinus infection. It's not that easy to diagnose in children and took an MRI scan for the paed to diagnose it for ds. He did get headaches as well.

ah yes, that reminds me - he was given decongestant by gp to help with night-time teeth clenching and snoring, so that may support the possible link between being blocked up and bad breath. However as mentioned above the mouthwash does help, even if it is only disguising the problem.

children that mouth breath when they are asleep often get bad breath as the nasal mucus that drips down the throat,dries up and goes discoloured and smelly. Then they try and hoick it up in the morning....yuk

Sometimes my DS has bad breath if he hasn't been drinking enough. The only other thing I was going to suggest was a dairy intolerance - it causes excess mucas so you get the nasal drip and nasty breath that goes with it....

my dd gets terrible breath before she comes out in a virus.

Does he brush his tongue as well as his teeth? My DD is very snory and prone to being blocked up and if she doesn't brush her tongue after she has brushed her teeth her breath can be a bit smelly. (she is also 5).