By Donna V. Scaglione
Having bad breath seems to go hand in hand with being human. We eat, but we don’t always brush as often as we should. We catch illnesses and take medications that make our breath smell like anything but roses, but we may not know how to make the odor go away.
There are ways to battle back, to stop being contributors to the local air pollution problem. The first step is figuring out what’s to blame for the bad odor. For help with your halitosis, consider these six tips.
1. Mouth maintenance
That means brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, flossing or using an interdental cleaner once a day, and seeing a dentist twice a year, advises the American Dental Association. If you wear dentures, clean those at least once a day. For extra help controlling plaque, your dentist may recommend an antimicrobial mouth rinse. He or she also will be able to tell if gum disease or an untreated cavity is the bad breath culprit.
