Scientists now know that bacteria and bad breath are intimately linked. It s usually bacteria, in fact, that produce the very unpleasant odor we all associate with halitosis. What s not so clear is why the bacteria cause problems in some people s mouths but not in others: our mouths are full of microorganisms-everyone has millions of them-including bacteria, yeasts, sometimes even protozoa, and in most mouths, they cause no problem at all. Many of the organisms living in our mouths are actually beneficial: among other things, they compete with more harmful organisms that might otherwise cause infection. The ones that produce the bad smell are predominantly anaerobes.

Get too many anaerobes and bad breath will shortly follow. Anaerobes live in the absence of oxygen-some can tolerate a little oxygen while others are exquisitely sensitive to it and die quickly in its presence. When anaerobes metabolize proteins for food, they produce volatile sulfur compounds as a byproduct-gaseous sulfur containing molecules that smell awful. We ve run into this kind of smell in nature: it s the smell of rotten eggs, or of organic material rotting in wet oxygen depleted conditions. It explains the link between bacteria and bad breath.

Most people only have a few anaerobes living in the mouth. They exist in small airless locations, like the tight spaces between the teeth, in little pockets in the gums, and in the many grooves on the surface of the tongue, particularly at the back of the mouth. Have just a few anaerobes and bad breath is not a problem have a lot and the picture changes. This explains why people with decaying teeth and gum disease tend to have trouble-more pockets and spaces available for anaerobes to multiply in, tissues breaking down and providing food for bacteria and bad breath is the inevitable result.

Understanding the relationship between anaerobes and bad breath suggests ways to control it. Keep your teeth and gums in good health brush and floss regularly to remove food particles, prevent tartar, and clear away any accumulation of organic debris and bacterial growth brush the tongue, taking care to brush the back of the tongue, a known site for bacteria and bad breath have oral problems evaluated and treated by a medical professional. For persistent bad breath, choose commercial products that are formulated to reduce the troublesome bacteria through physical removal or by inhibiting growth and survival.

R. Drysdale is a freelance writer with more than 25 years experience as a health care professional. She is a contributing editor to Bacteria and Bad Breath at Bad Breath Cure, a blog dedicated to the treatment of bad breath.

Related post

Stomach Bacteria And Bad Breath
Stomach Bacteria And Bad BreathBy Milos Pesic Halitosis is also known as bad breath. It is an extremely embarrassing problem for many people to...

Home Remedy for Bad Breath - Get The Facts
Home Remedy for Bad Breath - Get The FactsBy Jason Sandlin Bad breath is a problem that is shared by millions of people across the country, and...

Curing Bad Breath
Curing Bad BreathBy Kent Pinkerton Bad Breath, also known as halitosis, is very common, but it varies in severity. Transient bad breath is the...

How To Get Rid Of Bad Breath
How To Get Rid Of Bad BreathBy Collins Deconle If you have bad breath you have probably tried countless so-called remedies to cure bad breath. ...

Which Bad Breath Products Would You Use?
Which Bad Breath Products Would You Use?By Tim Shank If I had to pick a social disease that I would not want it would have to be bad breath. I ...

Bad Breath Out Of Nose
Bad Breath Out Of NoseBy Peter Stewart Bad breath is usually associated with a smell from the mouth, but occasionally it may appear to come fro...

What Causes Bad Breath?
What Causes Bad Breath?By Achi Amaechi A-ha, you have Bad Breath! Ok, let s be a little mild here, you have discovered that people step a back ...

Getting Rid of Bad Breath
Getting Rid of Bad BreathBy Milos Pesic Do you find people turning away from you when you talk to them? Or, did someone tell you before that y...

Remedies to Cure Bad Breath
Remedies to Cure Bad BreathBy Oliver Turner Having bad breath can be a very embarrassing situation. However, this is a condition practically ev...

Does Gum Freshen Breath
Does Gum Freshen BreathBy R. Drysdale Most of us have carried a package of mint chewing gum around in a pocket, as much for a quick breath fix ...