What is Halitosis | Halitosis Information

Halitosis is the medical name for what is commonly known as “bad breath”. The origin of the word halitosis is formed by two words of Greek and Latin origin namely, ‘halitus’ and ‘osis’, that are formed to mean the condition of breath.

Halitosis is a common problem that people suffer from and it is a cause for embarrassment during social interactions. Common causes of halitosis include bad oral hygiene, dehydration, dryness of mouth due to certain medications, gum infections.

In a normal or simple case, halitosis can be cured by simple and good oral practices which include proper brushing, regular rinsing of the mouth after every meal, cleaning the tongue and mouth to get rid of food particles etc., These practices would avoid bacteria from settling in the mouth and thus starting the infection thereby causing the malodour.

For normal cases many tools are available to help people get rid of halitosis. These include off the shelf items like mouthwash, various kinds of mouth and breath freshners, tongue scrapers among many other things. These are possible mechanisms to stop the perceivable symptom - bad odour. In more severe cases where the bad breath is caused due to diabetis or gastrointestinal problem, consulting a physician is mandatory to get a complete cure.

Based on the level of infection set in by Halitosis, different types of treatments have to be undertaken. By regularly following a good pattern of oral hygiene, Halitosis can be prevented. As is the case with other medical problems, here too “prevention is better than the cure”.

What is Halitosis - An Introduction