Got Bad Breath? Blame These 8 Foods & Drinks

Common foods and drinks that cause bad breath.

Friday, September 8, 2017, 20:03

Let's face it. Bad breath is a major problem!

Forget about the horror you see on the faces of your friends when you open your mouth.

With breath stinking like sweaty socks, you can wave goodbye to deep conversations because no one will ever want to get close to you.

But is it because you don't maintain your oral hygiene?

Could be.

But the more obvious culprits might be the food and drinks you consume every day. Like these.

#1 Good Old Onion & Garlic

While they may not be the stars of any dish (are they?), we can't deny the fact that without these sidekicks close at hand, the superhero of your dish will just be plain Jain. (Pun intended.)

Unfortunately, what they make up for in taste, turns out to sour the mood of the entire room afterwards.

This is because both onion and garlic contains sulfur compounds in them that gets released in our saliva and bloodstream when we eat them, which ultimately stinks up our breath.

#2 Your Regular Cup o' Joe: Coffee

A cup of well-made coffee is like a slice of heaven. But the aftermath is not pretty in this case either.

Why?

Because not only is this drink slightly acidic (which encourages bacteria to thrive and flourish), it also dries up your mouth (which, again, encourages bacteria to thrive and flourish).

#3 Alcohol: Pint or Bottle, It's All the Same!

We will not shed a tear if after reading this point, you decide to quit drinking.

Neither will all the people who usually tolerate your "alcohol breath" right up in their faces.

Because alcohol not only dries up your mouth, it also produces breakdown products that enter your bloodstream and then reach your lungs.

Thus, the bad breath.

#4 The Queen of Diary: Milk

All babies stink.

And by that we don't mean their constant diaper disasters.

It's the other hole we are concerned with today: The foul-smelling cave that gave rise to the term "milk breath".

This is because milk contains all the elements that bacteria usually love to feed on, namely proteins and carbohydrates.

And once these bacteria have worked their magic upon the milk remnants coating the inside of your mouth (which releases hydrogen sulfide), you can be guaranteed of a breath that can kill half the room.

#5 Cheese Connoisseur Anyone?

Ever wondered why cheese stinks so much?

It's because it is made of curdled milk and a good dose of (cheese) bacteria.

That's why there are so many varieties of cheese available in the marketplace. All of which have different colors, textures, flavors, and smells.

It all depends on the kind of bacteria in the cheese mix!

And unfortunately, the stink of the cheese doesn't just end at the plate.

It ends up on your tongue with every bite, where it sits like a thick scum, inviting the bacteria in your mouth to go at it (which they obviously do).

In fact, the intensity of your bad breath will increase a hundredfold if you have any of these following ones.

Icons in the infographic made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com is licensed by CC 3.0 BY

#6 Meat, Fish, and Everything in Between

We already saw how one dense protein (cheese) can cause bad breath.

But it's not the only protein capable of repelling every human being in a 30 yard radius.

Dense meat products, including red meat and fish, are also known to cause bad breath.

Plus: We all know fish is stinky regardless!

#7 Sugary Drinks & Candies

Sugar is the bane of your life, and a boon for your dentist.

Not only does it cause your mouth to go intensely acidic (which accelerates tooth decay), it is also the prime sustenance for all the bacteria that already exist inside your mouth (because brushing does not get rid of all of them).

Talk about a buzz kill!

#8 Orange Juice, Lemon Water, and Pickles

We have already discussed why it is not a good thing if the inside of your mouth goes acidic.

That's why it doesn't take a big leap to understand why acidic foods and drinks, like orange juice, raspberry cola, and pickles might be behind your bad breath problems.

Don't say we didn't warn you.