Morning Breath

Have you ever woken up, stretched, got ready for the day, and then, you have the worst taste in your mouth? This is very common, and morning breath is something that people get embarrassed about, but not something to feel bad about. Here, we’ll go over what the cause is, and how to prevent it. 

What it Is 

It’s basically halitosis, which happens from the bacteria within the mouth, and when the bacteria break this down, they create chemicals that smell very foul. 

The cause of this is as follows: 

• Food, especially food that’s leftover which causes this. Onions, garlic, and spices will definitely create smells that are stinky as you sleep 

• Dry mouth, which is a condition where the saliva is left, which is how bacteria come around.This is also known as xerostomia, and this type of dry mouth does make it hard to deal with.

• Oral care that’s bad definitely has a bad breath, and also may develop gum disease too! 

• Tobacco is something that also creates bad breath, and smokers are more prone to this, along with dry mouth and gum disease. 

• Medications also which create dry mouth that cause the bacteria to be much worse will make your breath smell funky 

Preventing morning breath 

How do you prevent it? First and foremost, grab some water. Have it before you go to bed, and when you wake up, take a nice, big swig of water to stave off the nasty breath. Remember that stuff that’s quite strong including tea, garlic, and coffee prior to sleeping will make your breath smelly, so be mindful of that. When you get up, you can also start taking care of your mouth as well to ensure that you’re not making it super stinky.

If you do have tobacco and alcohol, always make sure to try and brush afterwards. Better yet, stop these habits, especially if you do them often, because they’re also not good for you. You should try to have a mouthwash that’s antiseptic each day.  Rinsing out with this will help to maintain better gum health, keep gingivitis off of your mouth, and also prevent the onset of bad breath. If you haven’t been cleaning up your tongue, start to do this too. Brush it, or use a tongue scraper during the morning, and right before you go to bed.

Chewing some gum as well is great for boosting the saliva in the mouth, and also is good for getting the nasty gunk out of your teeth, offering you a fresh better sort of life too.  Finally, get breath mints that are sugar free. Get some that are xylitol, since they also help with making sure that the mouth is good, and also prevents bad breath.

For a lot of us, morning breath is not fun, and it’s not a fun way to start your every day. The key here is that you need to take care of your teeth. That's because your teeth are your first line of defense, and when you brush your teeth twice daily, offering flossing, and making sure that the tongue is neglected is vital.

Try to make sure that you get cleanings every six or so months, as the hygienist will actually get deep in there, take care of the gunk, and make your mouth shine.

Bad breath is bad, but it doesn't have to hold you back forever. For a lot of people, there are a lot of great ways to prevent this, and by taking care of this, it’ll go away too.

Plaque on teeth

If you’re someone that touches the front of your mouth and notices that there is some sticky deposits on your teeth, especially from bacteria, you’re not alone. There is a lot that you can do about it, depending on the cause of this. 

The cause of It 

What is the cause of this? Simply put, it’s bacterial. While some bacterial is good for your mouth, the problem is that it can start to buildup especially around the gumline. While it can be expected and is oftentimes normal, you want to prevent it.  Don’t let it get ahold of sugar, as it creates different acids when the sugar touches it, and this make problems for the mouth as well. 

Why Care? 

There is a lot that can happen if you start to let this plaque start to buildup. Some of these problems include the following: 

• Decay on teeth, where the plaque will wear away the enamel on the teeth, creating cavities. When they’re not cleaned off, it breaks down the entirety of the tooth, making it possible that it may have to be extracted if it gets extreme. 

• Abscesses: this is an infection from the bacteria that occur within the tooth, and it happens due to too many bacteria inside of this, ignoring the plaque that’s there. 

• Tartar: if you don’t floss or brush, this creates tartar, staining the teeth tan and yellow. You can’t get rid of this with just brushing and flossing, so you’ll have to see a dentist to help. 

• Periodontitis or gingivitis: this is pretty much gum disease. The plaque that’s there doe buildup, and it creates an inflammation that’s oftentimes serious, to the point of tooth removal due to the inflammation of the gum

Basically, you don’t’ want to have this stick around forever, so getting rid of it now is vital. 

Treating This 

There are a few ways for you to remove this. It’s unavailable, and it’s good to remove this now before it gets worse. First, you want to floss daily, or utilize interdental cleaning devices in order to get rid of food and other particles that are between the teeth. 

You should utilize fluoride toothpaste to strengthen the teeth in order to protect them. Brush the teeth twice daily for two minutes in order to get rid of plaque in its tracks. You also want to make sure that you use a mouthwash that’s antibacterial in order to control the buildup of this. Try to avoid certain foods, as those that are sugary are not good for tooth decay, and it can create acids that form on the teeth. 

This I something that can be hard to do, but after you finish a meal, try to chew some gum that’s ADA-approved, those that are sugar-free and usually don’t’ contain anything bad in them. alternatively, having water to rinse out your mouth after you eat something is also a viable way to help. 

Remember as well, that the best way to prevent plaque from even being there is to talk to a doctor, and have the dentist clean your gums on the regular, as this is the easiest way to ensure that every part of your mouth gets cleaned up. 

Remember, they have specific tools that offer proper cleaning for a lot of people, so getting this taken care of, and a nice dental cleaning isn’t just a suggestion, it’s almost a necessity in order to ensure that you get the best cleaning possible, so that the plaque that’s there on the teeth doesn’t get any worse from here. 

How to stop Bruxism

 If you wake up the next day with your jaw being sore, a big headache, or the sound of gnashing coming from your mouth, chances are you’re grinding your teeth. Bruxism isn’t just a mild annoyance though, it’s something that can damage your teeth if you leave this unchecked. But there are ways to prevent this, and here, we’ll go over how to stop bruxism. 

The symptoms 

This is usually seen in the form of TMJ and headaches that are common. You also may notice that your teeth are fractured, inflamed, and gums are receding. 

Other symptoms might include: 

• more sensitive teeth 

• soreness of the jaw 

• loose or chipped teeth 

• temple headaches 

Teeth grinding along with bruxism both have very similar symptoms to other types of conditions, and if you notice that it’s happening, you can stop it. Usually though, most people do it when sleeping, so that’s hard to mitigate, but if you learn the symptoms, it can help. 

How it impacts oral health 

When you clench and grind your teeth, the force that’s there is actually much higher than what you do during chewing. When you eat, usually the food buffers this, but the thing is, when you engage in bruxism, this affects the whole mouth, with no barriers. 

This leads too: 

• enamel wearing away 

• chipping or cracking of implants, teeth, and bridgework too 

• sensitivity of the teeth 

• teeth that are loose or painful. 

• Facial pain and jaw muscle clenching 

• Headaches 

This is usually caused by different things. 

The causes 

There are a few causes that lead to bruxism. 

The first is snoring.  Usually, snoring plays a large part in bruxism. When you suffer from sleep apnea or even sleep talking, it can impact the breathing, and you might clench your teeth to open up the airway. 

Anger, stress and frustration also cause this, according to the ADA. When you start to engage in more relaxing activities, it can help with the development of this. 

Some people also may have this due to lifestyle choices. If you smoke or drink alcohol, this can sometimes lead to a development of this. However, this is something that’s also seen in children, so it does depend on the circumstances. 

There are also certain meds, such as antidepressants, and also other neurological conditions including Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease.  

Treatments 

The best way to treat this is to talk to your doctor.  You want to also discuss this with a dentist too. 

Most dental hygienists will see the signs of bruxism right away, and they can help provide the best treatments possible to help with this. 

Probably one of the biggest things you must do, is to calm down, and stay relaxed as best as you can. That’s because it can help you relax, and reduce the chances of teeth grinding. A hot shower, a bath with a book that you enjoy, or even practicing meditation and mindfulness is a good way to reduce this. 

You also may want to get a nightguard, which is basically a device that you wear that’s like a mouthguard for your teeth during the night. If you grind your teeth, you can prevent further damage. 

You also may need some mandibular advancement devices as well, which brings the jaw forward as you sleep, and this is something that’s used for treating sleep disorders. 

You want to treat this right away, and get rid of it whenever you can, for your own jaw’s health and safety reasons as well and for your oral health needs too.

All about Gingivitis

If you’re someone who has been told by the dentist that you have gingivitis, you’re not alone. This is a mild type of gum disease that’s created by the plaque that builds up within the gumline.  You might feel bad about this, but don’t be. In fact, it’s quite common. But the problem is, if you’re not careful, this creates something worse, so the sooner you take care of the problem, the better that it’ll be.  Here, we’ll talk about this, and tips to have better gum health too.

What Gingivitis Is 

This is basically where a bacteria builds along where your gum line is, and it creates a plaque that’s a film that’s soft and sticky that sits around there.

Plaque in general, when you don’t get it taken off by the dentist, becomes tartar, and this needs to be taken off by your dentist.

They both contribute directly to gum disease, and the early stages of this are called gingivitis.

About half of the adults within the US alone deal with this.  While it’s mild to start with, when you don’t properly treat this, it becomes what’s called periodontitis, and that’s much more severe. It can cause teeth to become loose, and in the worst situations, they might even fall out, which is why when you get a diagnosis for this, you want to treat this immediately. 

The Symptoms 

The best way to get this treated is to talk to your doctor. But if you notice something is wrong, you can go in early on before it gets worse.

The symptoms of gingivitis that you typically deal with include: 

• Gums that are swollen, puffy, or receding 

• The gums feel tender 

• It becomes more red than pink 

• The gums will bleed when you brush or floss 

• You have a bad taste within the mouth

• Your breath is bad 

• The teeth are loose 

If you start to notice this, then you’ll want to talk to your doctor 

The Risk Factors 

There are a few risk factors that you need to be mindful of.

Lifestyle choices, including smoking a lot, not brushing your teeth or flossing, a diet that’s unhealthy, stress, and obesity, are major contributors to this.

Age is another one.  Those who are over the age of 65 develop this in some capacity. 

Medications can also play a major part in this. if you have certain medications, they can dry out the mouth, increasing the risk for gingivitis. 

Finally, there are other diseases that can cause this. diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis, or even pregnancy can cause this to develop in some capacity. 

Preventative Care 

There are a few things that you can do to make this better for you.

First, you want to brush twice daily. If brushing on the regular is already something that you do, look at your technique. You might need to just be gentler with your teeth, and use the correct pressure so that the gums don’t get irritated.

With this as well, you also want to make sure that you floss between each of your teeth once daily, in order to eliminate the bacteria and other things that irritate the teeth, reducing the inflammation that’s there.

Finally, you want to incorporate mouth rinses, so that there is more protection, and it can be used to treat infections, and the growth of bacteria. Talk to your doctor for a good recommendation before you get a chance to do this. 

Gingivitis is not fun, but proper prevention and care can make this easier on your oral health, and make things easier.