How To Treat Bad Breath: Home Remedies To Fix It Permanently

How Does What You Eat Affect Breath?

Basically, all the food eaten begins to be broken down in your mouth.  If you eat foods with strong odours (such as garlic or onions), brushing and flossing — even mouthwash — merely covers up the odour temporarily.

The odour will not go away completely until the foods have passed through your body.

Why Do Poor Habits Cause Bad Breath?

If you don’t brush and floss teeth daily, food particles can remain in your mouth, promoting bacterial growth between teeth, around the gums, and on the tongue. This causes bad breath. Antibacterial mouth rinses also can help reduce bacteria.

In addition, odour-causing bacteria and food particles can cause bad breath if dentures are not properly cleaned.

Smoking or chewing tobacco-based products also can cause bad breath, stain teeth, reduce your ability to taste foods, and irritate your gums.

That being said, in this article, we are going to tell you in details the causes, symptoms and how to get rid of bad breath permanently and naturally at home.

Causes

Halitosis. That’s what bad breath is called medically. Meaning, unpleasant odours exhaled while breathing which are noticeable. So what causes halitosis or bad breath?

1. Bacterial Infections: Did you know that over 600 types of bacteria are found in the mouth (on an average)? Many of these can be the root cause of high levels of foul odours.

2. Medications: Certain medications form a film-like coating over the tongue (OTT) and react with stomach acids. Thereby emitting smell, which can lead to bad breath.
   This is a common experience we all face, isn’t it? Who would like to taste OTC drugs in the first place? NO ONE!

3. Oral Hygiene Poor: In most cases (and in large numbers), bad breath comes from the tongue and gums, which is a result of poor oral hygiene.

4. Nasal Drip: Those of you (or your family members) who have ever been put on nasal drip would know that the nasal drip goes down the back of the throat during colds, allergies, and sinus infection. This causes bad breath. That’s because the affected person is not able to brush or floss frequently.

5. Certain Foods: Onions, garlic etc. leave lasting odours in the mouth. Till the time these foods are eliminated or washed down the tongue, alternatives like mouthwash, chewing gum, and toothpaste can mask the odours.

6. Dry Mouth: Some people who are on prescription and over-the-counter medicines for allergies or cold can face the situation of dry mouth which leads to bad breath.

7. Tobacco (and Tobacco Products): Smokers and tobacco chewers are most likely to end up with bad breath.

8. Tongue Unclean: Bacteria on the tongue (and you can’t locate them) make up for approx 90% of cases of mouth-related bad breath.

10. Gum Disease: Bacteria growing below-the-gumline can create room for foul odour and bad breath.
11. Tonsils: There are a small number of populations who suffer from tonsil stones. When released, they smell extremely foul and can cause bad breath.

Symptoms

The smell of Bad breath depends on the source or the cause. Some people worry too much for the fear of bad breath (even though they don’t have it) while others have bad breath, yet they don’t know about it (or fail to realize it).

Here is a run-down of the symptoms:

1. Food: Whenever there is a breakdown of food particles in and around your teeth, it can increase the chances of bacteria build-up and lead to foul odour.

2. Tobacco Products: Smoking is a perennial problem, not just for lungs but unpleasant mouth odour too.

3. Poor dental hygiene

4. Mouth Infections

5. Miscellaneous nose, throat and mouth conditions

Home Remedies to Cure Bad Breath

Cheer up! You can make bad breath a thing of the past when you follow these remedies.

1. Parsley

What all you need: Parsley leaves

Directions:

1. Just chew on a sprig of parsley.

2. This will help in refreshing your breath

How it works: Parsley has chlorophyll which neutralizes bad breath. It also helps in food digestion.

Tip: Try out this option – extract the juice of parsley leaves by putting them in a juicer. Sip the juice whenever you feel the need to freshen your breath.

2. Fenugreek

What all you need: 1 tsp Fenugreeks seeds, water

Directions:

1. Boil the seeds of fenugreek (or methi seeds) in a cup of water

2. Strain it and drink it once daily

How it works: Fenugreek tea is one of the well-liked home remedies when it comes to tackling bad breath.

3. Cloves

What all you need: Few cloves

Directions:

1. Put few cloves in your mouth

2. Chew them thoroughly for few minutes to knock off bad breath

How it works: Cloves are known to freshen your breath, since they have antibacterial properties which are helpful in getting rid of bad breath.

Tip: Apart from chewing, there is another option which you can try out with cloves. CLOVE TEA. To make it, boil a cup of water. Then add 1 tsp ground cloves and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. Either drink the tea or use it as a mouthwash, twice a day. Nice idea (and workable).

4. Apple Cider Vinegar

What all you need: 1 tbsp raw and unfiltered ACV, a glass of water
Directions:

1. Pour 1 tbsp of ACV in a glass of water

2. Stir the treated solution

3. Drink it before having your meals

How it works: Thanks to its pH balancing properties, ACV not only gets rid of the bad breath, it also helps in stimulating digestion.

Tip: Alternatively, you can also gargle by mixing ACV in a cup of water.

5. Baking Soda

What all you need: Baking Soda, drinking water

Directions:

1. First, warm up the drinking water.

2. Pour the warm water in a glass.

3. Now put one and a half tsp of baking soda in the glass having warm water

4. Mouth-rinse it daily till you get satisfactory results

How it works: Baking soda (also known as bicarbonate of soda) balances out the acid levels and fights oral bacteria which lead to bad breath.

Tip: You can also brush your teeth with baking soda. This will cut down the acidity level in your mouth and stop the Bacteria build-up in the mouth too.

6. Cinnamon

What all you need: 1 tsp cinnamon powder, a cup of water

Directions:

1. Boil the powder of cinnamon in a cup of water

2. Strain the solution

3. Use it as a mouth-rinse to freshen up your breath.

How it works: Cinnamon has cinnamic aldehyde – an essential oil which not only fights bad breath, it also reduces the number of bacteria in your mouth.

Tip: You can add some cardamom and bay leaves as well while boiling cinnamon powder in water. It adds to the taste and health.

7. Cardamom

What all you need: Cardamom pod – 1

Directions:

1. Chew on the cardamom pod

2. Or peel the pod and chew on the seeds inside and ingest it

How it works: Had a meal with the overpowering smell/odor of garlic or onion? Pop a cardamom pod into your mouth immediately after the meal.
Cardamom has long been used in India after meals. It is not only an aromatic freshener, but reduces bad breath too.

8. Lemon Juice

What all you need: 1 tbsp lemon juice, a cup containing water

Directions:

1. Pour lemon juice in a cup. Stir it well.

2. Rinse your mouth with it

How it works: Lemon rinse has been used for generations to say goodbye to bad breath. Lemons have acidic content which puts a stop to the growth of bacteria.

Tip: Add a bit of salt to the lemon juice and drink it. This will help solve out the problem of “dry mouth” which is one of the main contributing reasons to bad breath.

9. Tea

What all you need: Sage tea, Green tea or black tea

Directions:

Making of Sage Tea:

1. Steep 1 tsp of dried sage in a cup of hot water for 5 minutes.

2. Strain it and drink this tea as often as you can to keep your breath fresh.

How it works: Herbal and normal teas fight out bad breath. Green and black tea has powerful antioxidant polyphenols which stop the growth of bad breath causing bacteria.

10. Crunchy Vegetables And Fruits

What all you need: Citrus fruits and veggies

How it works: These have vitamins A and C, and antioxidants. All of these are essential for getting healthy teeth and gums.

11. Coconut Oil

What all you need: 1 tbsp Virgin Coconut Oil

Directions:

1. Swish the coconut oil in your mouth for 5 to 10 minutes

2. Spit it out

3. Rinse your mouth with lukewarm water after this

How it works: ‘Swishing’ of Coconut oil is a popular way to keep the mouth in the pink of health and bacteria-free. It’s nice to know that this oil has anti- inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.

Tip: Do the coconut oil home remedy every day till you find the bad breath gone.

12. Fennel Seeds

What all you need: 1 tbsp fennel seeds

Directions:

1. Chew, chew, chew a couple of fennel seeds but slowly

2. This will not only freshen your breath, it will also stimulate saliva production

How it works: Light or heavy meal, end it up with fennel seeds. It is an excellent mouth freshener which helps control bad breath and fights bacteria in the mouth.

Tip: Want some fun with fennel seeds? Drink fennel tea 2-3 times a day. Making fennel tea is simple. Just steep 1 or 2 tsp of fennel seeds in a cup of hot water for 5 to 10 minutes. Now drink it. That’s it.

13. Peppermint Essential Oil

What all you need: Peppermint oil

Directions:

1. Just put 1-2 drops of peppermint oil in your mouth

2. Swish and gargle with it and spit it out

How it works: Peppermint oil is not just a natural remedy, but a natural alternative to breath fresheners. It’s also good for your digestion and gives your breath a pleasant smell.

Tip: If your digestive tract is the cause of bad breath, then use 1-2 drops of peppermint oil in water after every meal. This will help the digestive system immensely.

14. Honey

What all you need: Manuka honey (preferably)
Directions:

1. In order to prevent bad breath, apply honey (ESPECIALLY MANUKA HONEY) on the gums

2. Massage them for about 2 to 5 minutes.

3. You can also mix 1 tbsp Manuka honey with 1/2 tbsp cinnamon powder and combine this mixture to a glass of hot water. Do a gargle with this water in the morning and evening.

How it works: Not many of us would know that Manuka honey is one of the most effective treatments for managing bad breath. It has anti-fungal and antibacterial properties.

Honey destroys only the bad bacteria and microbes, at the same time it allows the good bacteria to grow. This makes honey more effective in treating halitosis (bad breath).

15. Banana

What all you need: Bananas

How it works: Munch on bananas! Not just because it is high in nutrition. But because they fight against the bad-breath-causing-bacteria.

Tip: Try and eat bananas in ‘raw’ form in fruit salads, or as topping in oats, milk shakes etc.

16. Mint or Cilantro

What all you need: Mint family (Peppermint or Spearmint)

Directions:

1. Chew a fresh mint for up to a minute.

2. You can also try peppermint oil drops under your tongue to get a refreshing feeling.

How it works: When you chew on mint leaves, you not only find relief from indigestion and heartburn, you also fight the bad breath causing bacteria in your mouth.
Mint not only has chlorophyll, but its ‘minty’ taste also helps mask the foul odours from your mouth avoiding you any kind of embarrassment.

17. Yoghurt

What all you need: A bowl of yoghurt

How it works: Yogurt is believed to be a new cure for the treatment of halitosis (meaning bad breath). Eating 6 ounces of unsweetened yoghurt a day for 6 weeks (according to research) reduced levels of odour-causing compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide, in the mouth.

Tip: Go ahead and mix berries and citrus fruits with yoghurt to enhance the taste and cut back on bad breath.

18. Tea Tree oil

What all you need: A toothpaste containing tea tree oil (or the actual product i.e. tea tree oil itself)

Directions:

1. Brush your teeth with a toothpaste that has tea tree oil

2. Or put a few drops of TTO (Tea tree oil) on your toothbrush having the toothpaste you use

How it works: Tea tree oil has antiseptic properties which act as a powerful disinfectant for your mouth.

Tip: As an option, you can mix a few drops of three essential oils – tea tree oil, peppermint oil and lemon oil in a glass of water and do a mouth rinse.

19. Activated Charcoal

What all you need: 1/2 tsp activated charcoal, and a toothbrush

Directions:

1. Ditch your toothpaste this time because you are to Brush your teeth with activated charcoal

2. Once you are through, rinse your mouth fully so as to remove all charcoal

How it works: The activated charcoal absorbs all the impurities in the mouth, killing harmful bacteria. It also whitens your teeth.

Tip: 2 to 3 times a week, use activated charcoal until the bad breath problem goes away

20. Epsom Salt

What all you need: 1 tsp Epsom salt, and a glass of lukewarm water

Directions:

1. This remedy is simple

2. Just mix Epsom salt in lukewarm water and gargle with it

How it works: Epsom salt is a fantastic remedy in fighting oral bacteria and removing odour from the mouth.

Tip: In the initial few days, do this remedy every day. After a while, do it every alternate day.

21. Eucalyptus Oil

What all you need: 2 to 3 drops eucalyptus oil, and a cup of water

Directions:

1. Simple gargle is what you need to do with a mixture of water and eucalyptus oil

2. Then rinse your mouth with plain water

How it works: Eucalyptus oil is gifted with anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. It means it has a bactericidal effect on different types of bacteria and alleviates any type of pain or swelling in your mouth.

Tip: Keep repeating this remedy until you experience relief.

22. Ginger

What all you need: 1 tsp juice of ginger, and a glass of water (but warm, not cold)

Directions:

1. First, grate or squeeze the ginger root to get fresh juice from it

2. Add the ginger juice to warm water

3. Now rinse your mouth with it

How it works: Ginger has anti-microbial properties which fight bad odour in the mouth and treat oral and throat infections too.

Tip: Do the ginger remedy post-meals in the beginning, then once every few days.

23. Grapefruit Seed Extract

What all you need: 1-2 drops of grapefruit seed extract

Directions:

1. Firstly, brush your teeth

2. Now put the grapefruit seed extract on your toothbrush and rub it on your teeth (gently)

3. Rinse your teeth with plain water

How it works: Grapefruit seed extract is a mouth-deodorizer. It removes all bacteria that may be growing in the mouth.

Tip: Repeat this remedy every day and you will find a difference in a week.

24. Salt Water

What all you need: 1 tbsp table salt, Lukewarm water (a glass)

Directions:

1. Make lukewarm water first

2. Then add salt to it

3. Now gargle with it

How it works: Saltwater is antimicrobial in nature. It neutralizes the pH of the mouth and cleanses it too.

Tip: Do the saltwater treatment once or twice a day (depending on the severity of your bad breath)

25. Sesame Oil

What all you need: 1 tbsp sesame oil and some lukewarm water

Directions:

1. Swish the sesame oil in your mouth for a few minutes

2. Spit it out and follow it up by doing a gargle with lukewarm water

How it works: Much like coconut oil, the sesame oil cleanses your mouth and improves dental health. It also whitens your teeth (which is an added benefit)

Tip: Do this remedy every day in the morning till you get satisfactory results

26. Guava

What all you need: Unripe guava

Directions:

1. Eat the kachcha (means unripe) guava during the day (anytime, no fixed time)

2. You can also cut the guava into pieces, sprinkle salt and black pepper powder on it and eat.

How it works: The wonder fruit guava is a good remedy for bad breath, bleeding and diseased gums, and sensitive teeth. It has plenty of vitamin C, tannic acid, malic acid, and oxalate to improve your oral health.

Tip: Eat a guava a few times a week to get positive results.

27. Hydrogen Peroxide

What all you need: 1 tbsp of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide solution, and half cup water

Directions:

1. First of all, dilute the hydrogen peroxide in water

2. Then rinse your mouth with this solution

3. Follow it up by brushing your gums, teeth, and tongue so that all residues get removed.

How it works: Hydrogen peroxide is a powerful anti-microbial solution which can help you easily get rid of pesky bad breath

Tip: Do this remedy in the morning after brushing your teeth. No harm repeating it a few times in the first two weeks after a gap of 1 or 2 days.

Prevention and Tips:

Give a blow to bad breath when you follow these suggestions:

• Brush your teeth twice a day: It is the first and most important thing in maintaining good dental health. Brush your teeth (at least) 2-3 minutes twice a day. The effort is to remove plaque and food debris.

• Floss your teeth once a day: Flossing daily will help remove food debris stuck in between the teeth (which sadly a toothbrush can’t reach).

• Clean the Mouth Regularly: Mouth cleaning is a very important step in preventing bad breath.

• Gargle: Doing a gargle with baking soda helps in combating bad breath.

• Suitable Gum: When you chew upon sugarless gum, it helps stimulate saliva flow. It is the saliva which helps wash away bad breath-causing food debris and bacteria.

• Clean the Tongue: Get yourself an inexpensive tool called a ‘tongue scraper’. It removes any residue build-up between the taste buds and folds in the tongue.

• Rinse Mouth After Every Meal: A mouth-rinse only masks the odour. It does not cure it. Do a quick-rinse with a mix of water and a few drops of peppermint oil. You can also do a mouth-rinse with black or green tea.

• Avoid Foods that Can Cause Bad Breath: Refined sweet foods and carbs (white sugar, white bread, eggs and meat) should be avoided as they promote the growth of anaerobic bacteria (which mostly thrive at night).

• Eat At Regular Intervals: Heard of ‘oral dryness’? This can happen when you eat after long gaps in the course of the day. This, in turn, promotes the build-up of odour-causing bacteria and bad breath.

• Use A Mouthwash (Non-alcohol Based): Suffer from oral irritations? Go for alcohol-free mouthwash. It not only freshens up breath, but it is also more effective in controlling plaque than fluoride rinses.

• Eat fibre-rich food: No avoiding fibre! Eating fresh fruits and veggies steps up your saliva flow and helps wash away bacteria from teeth, tongue and gums (which lead to bad breath).

• Drink green and black teas: Ditch your coffee and go for a cup of green or black tea. Both these teas have polyphenols which halt the bacteria-growth.

• Clean your mouth after eating meat, fish or dairy products: No doubt they look tasty to the mind and tongue, but they can leave behind food debris (particularly non-veg items) which when left unclean can attract bad breath.

• Stop smoking: Non-smokers will be surprised (smokers won’t and you know why) on finding out that smoking contributes to bad breath. Tobacco dries out your mouth creating a lingering ‘unpleasant’ smell even after brushing your teeth.

• Breathe through your nose instead of your mouth: In adults, chronic mouth breathing can invite bad breath and gum disease. The better option is breathing through your nose.

• Clean your dentures at least once a day: Just as you clean your natural teeth once a day, similarly you should clean your dentures too.

• Eliminate dairy products from your diet: Experiencing bad breath symptoms associated with dairy products? Try cutting out on dairy products.

• Avoid drying medication: There are medicines that can trigger dry mouth. Take them only after your doctor prescribes it, or else skip it.

• Don’t Skip Breakfast: When you skip breakfast, you invite bad breath. So, have a light breakfast, at least.

• Reduce Coffee/Alcohol: Shun alcohol and coffee (I know it sounds tough but is a MUST) if you want your oral health to be good.

• Reduce Complex Carbs: Refined sugar (an example of complex carbs) can not only cause obesity, but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. So reduce it.

When To Seek Medical Attention?

Just started a new medication? Or have had recent dental surgery? Then consult your health-care provider.

Following the above remedies, you can cure all types of bad breath smell, whether it from the stomach, lungs or even after brushing.
As this bad breath stayed for years, you can still fix and treat it either with tablets or with the remedies listed above.

If you have any question, comment below.