Bad Breath Causes and Remedies

Bad breath can be an embarrassing problem for your child. While sometimes it stems from eating a particularly foul-odored food like onion or garlic, it could be from an oral health problem or even a medication. By understanding how it happens and some remedies, you can help your child stop or prevent it.

Causes of Bad Breath

Interestingly enough, brushing helps very little after a child eats onions and garlic because the smells from foods like garlic and onion don’t just linger in the mouth. Once your kid eats these foods, the odor-causing substance in them enters the bloodstream. Once in the lungs, your child exhales that odor until the smell subsides over time. 

However, the top reason why your child may have bad breath is from poor oral hygiene. When he or she doesn’t brush off the bacteria on your teeth, it forms a film known as plaque that can irritate the gums, causing them to swell. When left unaddressed, the bacteria cause pockets under the gumline. The bacteria give off an odor from their waste product.

If your child has a dry mouth, he or she is more likely to have bacteria in his or her mouth.

Sometimes, your child’s bad breath comes from a medication that causes dry mouth or causes his or her body to release chemicals that contribute to bad breath.

Remedies

Make sure your kid brushes and flosses daily.  Brush your tongue too!

Talk to your child’s pediatrician to see if medication could be the culprit.

Additionally, take your child to a pediatric dentist every six months for a cleaning and examination.

Contact Us

Sunshine Smiles Pediatric Dentistry can help your child combat bad breath. A pediatric dentist in Melbourne from our practice can assist if your child has gum disease. On the other hand, we can also help your kid prevent it.

Book an appointment on our website or call us at 321-622-6255.