Bad breath (from the other side!)

[LemonTartsForever]

I've seen a few 'bad breath' threads recently, with people complaining about their partners breath... its made me think about myself and how to address the issue I've suffered with for years. I'm on the other side and seeing the posts of how 'disgustingly vile' (which I agree with btw) has made me want to get it sorted.

I'm a 23 year old female, I'm healthy, I eat well and drink plenty of water. I brush my teeth three/four times a day, I use mouth wash and I floss. I still have the most vile breath. I know people pick up on it occasionally, ex boyfriends out of spite have said things such as "it's a shame, you've got such a pretty face with the most disgusting breath" I can taste it also. I constantly carry mints and chewing gum to hide it. I'll wake up at 3am to brush my teeth in case I breathe on DP and before he wakes! I feel so sorry for my lovely DP he's never said a word bless him

I think it's hereditary as my dad and auntie suffer with the same thing. I literally just cried my eyes out writing this, it's affecting me so much. I didn't go to a job interview the other day because I'd misplaced my chewing gum just as I was walking into their office!

I don't have tonsil stones I don't think, I can't see anything? Does anyone have any other possible causes?

I was moaning at DS for not brushing his teeth because his breath stunk. Turned out he was undiagnosed type 1 diabetic and his breath was due to DKA, not sure what it stands for but is to do with keytone.

A good way to check if your breath smells is to lick your wrist and sniff it after 10 seconds.

I don't go to the hygienist but I have seen the dentist for check ups and he says my teeth are very healthy and strong. I've never had a filling, never get tooth ache etc. I had them professionally cleaned and the lady commented on how naturally white and healthy they look. Pity they'd put Shreks breath to shame.

nomore do the lick and sniff trick, it does smell and probably smells 10x worse to others. Diabetes has been ruled out, I had a miscarriage recently and they did blood sugars then, all normal

ploppy sorry to hear you're in the same boat too. Oh god never even dreamed of not brushing them before bed! Well DP is on a night shift tonight so I might give it a go tonight... I'll update tomorrow!

Hey OP, just wondering when you say you eat healthy what exactly do you eat? Do you eat lots of meat and dairy? If so you could have an imbalance of pH or a gastric ulcer which is secreting fluids which might smell!

Ask your dentist and if they find no cause then ask you GP.
You may have tonsil stones even if you can't see them. They hide in the crevices.
Do you have fillings? Do you smoke? How long do you brush for? Electric toothbrush? Flossing? Brush your tongue too?
CB12 is meant to be good.

missbax here's what I've had today, my breath is the same regardless of what I eat really but here's a standard day...

Breakfast: Greek yogurt, a squirt of honey and fruit pieces mixed in

Lunch: chicken and pawn noodles with vegetables

Dinner: fajitas and sweet potato fries

I hardly ever sweet things and drink plenty of water.

Thanks for all your help everyone

6 monthly hygienist appts for regular pro cleans.
What does it smell like?

I don't have any filling and have very healthy teeth. I don't smoke.

I have both an electric toothbrush and normal, I'll use the electric in the morning and the normal for bed/in the night. I'd say I brush for about a minute and half each time? Then two rinses of mouth wash. I floss probably twice a week but there isn't any residue on the floss and it doesn't smell (just checked!)

I can't really describe it, it just smells rank!

Try a water flosser - I literally have never looked back since getting one

But also second the hygenist visit

I was like this till I stopped having sugar in tea and coffee, I don't why but it made it irradiate completely 😐

*eradicate

Surely if your tooth is decaying Drcoconut you should do something. That's pretty rank and you must be at risk of an infection. Boak at the thought of all that extra festering bacteria in your mouth.

Just out of curiosity, why don't you go to the dental hygienist? I thought most people went every 6 months.

little if I'm completely honest it's because I have a complete phobia of someone being near my mouth. I go to the dentist once a year (I should go more, I know) but my dentist has never specifically recommended it - should he, if I just go for a normal check up?

It sounds like your dental hygiene is really good so it doesn't sound as though it's related to bad breath but a build up of plaque if you've not been to the hygienist probably isn't helping. (It's impossible to get it all yourself).

I've always gone to the dentist and hygienist every 6 months so I'm not sure if the dentist recommends it usually. Maybe phone up and ask. The dentist checks for decay/other problems but the hygienist will do a scrape and polish/remove any plaque etc and may be able to confirm that your teeth are not causing bad breath.

I can understand why it's really difficult to go if you've got a phobia though.

See if you can get tested for helicobacter pylori - that can cause awful breath.

Are you actually sure you have bad breath? You say you have never actually smelt it.

mummy will mention this to DR thanks.

kathy absolutely, there's no doubt about it unfortunately. I probably didn't make myself clear, it's the dental floss I've not before. My breath I definitely have!

You need to be brushing for the full 2 mins. Does your electric toothbrush have a 2 min timer? And use the electric for both brushes morning and eve. They are significantly better than manual.
Brush the tongue too.
Does you mouthwash contain alcohol? That can dry out the mouth and actual cause worse breath. Only one rinse is necessary. Try upping the flossing too.

Your diet doesn't sound bad but some people react badly to different foods - you say you have chicken and prawns for lunch and fajitas for dinner too? Are they meat also? Our bodies aren't technically designed to eat meat (cue the "well why do we have fangs then?" comments)
Could you try a more plant based diet for a week or two and see if that helps?

I do feel for you. Given that your floss doesn't smell, I'd be suspecting something other than dental hygiene. H Pylori is one possible though you might have other clues such as being gassy or unusually foul smelling poo. But there are other things it could be. Good luck in getting to the cause. There used to be parsley capsules you could take for stomach breath issues - if it's a stomach cause those might help.

These

Or similar, might just help a bit while you investigate causes

You poor thing. Your dp sounds lovely.
No real advice but just