After your regular oral hygiene routine bad breath persists? Do you notice how your breath embarrasses other people? Does this make you want to isolate from people?
At the same time, you don't want to use commercial products for bad breath because many of these contain toxic and harmful chemicals for your health.
So, how do you get rid of bad breath then?
What about finding a complementary natural remedy that may improve your breath?
See below, a list of natural ways to fight bad breath to use along with your basic oral hygiene routine.
How to stop bad breath from the mouth
80% of the all the bad breath-causing microbes live in the mouth.
Clean your mouth regularly to create an unfavorable living environment for bad breath bacteria.
The below natural remedies improve the saliva flow and maintains the cleanliness of your oral cavity.
Make this a habit and you'll reduce bad breath bacteria development in your mouth.
1. Homemade mouthwashes
We all love the fresh breath that mouthwashes provide us with.
But here is the catch.
Most commercial mouthwashes use strong antibacterial agents like alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and chlorhexidine. These agents mask the bad smell for a short while but do more harm to your oral health in the long run.
These mouthwashes don’t distinguish between harmful bacteria and helpful flora inside your mouth. Which means that, rinsing with commercial mouthwashes you remove all the bad bacteria and destroy the flora in the mouth.
For example, Dr. Lin says that you need to avoid using mouthwashes that claim to kill up to 99,9% of the germs in the mouth. Here is why:
Many people think the best way to combat bad breath and improve oral hygiene is through using strong, sanitizing mouthwashes. They opt for powerful, astringent mouthwashes that zap their mouth’s bacteria hoping it will leave them with fresh, minty breath.
But that’s not how your mouth works.
Your mouth is actually a fine balance of microbes working together with your gut microbes and immune system to keep you healthy.
Imagine your mouth as a pleasant little coral reef with different corals, anemones, and other critters. These make up an ecosystem and each critter needs the other creatures to live and thrive. Even a little competition among species is fine because it keeps everything in balance. This comparison may seem like a silly metaphor, but it’s far more accurate than viewing your mouth as simply teeth, gums, and a tongue. Your mouth is much more than that.
Dr. Lin
Functional dentist
Make your own homemade mouthwash using natural ingredients like baking soda, apple cider vinegar, essential oils, etc.
2. Use apple cider vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is an acidic solution that, if used as a complementary remedy for your oral hygiene, may improve the freshness of your breath.
Though it does a great job at removing the bad breath bacteria from your mouth, if not used properly, apple cider vinegar may damage your health.
So, first, inform yourself about how to use apple cider vinegar for bad breath.
3. Drink water to hydrate your mouth
Water drinking reduces bad breath bacteria in the mouth in two ways.
1. It washes bacteria.
2. It maintains a healthy level of salivation in the mouth.
Dehydration dries out your mouth which is another bad breath symptom.
For example.
Dry mouth is the reason you have that morning breath.
That’s why it’s recommended to drink a glass of water on an empty stomach upon waking up.
4. Gargle your mouth with warm salty water
The white coating is formed from the rests of fats and oils after taken meals.
If you don’t clean these residues from your tongue, bacteria start processing (eating) them, which eliminates mouth odor in the process.
Gargling with warm salty water also alleviates the unpleasant mouth odor.
Salt removes the buildup of bacteria on the tongue while the gargling effect washes it away.
To make a salty water mouthwash, mix a ½ teaspoon of salt with a glass of warm water. Mix it well until salt dissolves 85%
Swish the solution inside your mouth for 30 seconds and repeat.
5. Try coconut oil pulling
Oil pulling is another natural way to clean Sulphur compounds from your mouth.
Oil pulling is an Ayurvedic remedy that ancient Indians used to prevent cavities, gingivitis, bad breath, and to maintain oral health.
Take a teaspoon of coconut oil in your mouth and swish it around for 10-20 minutes.
You’ll be amazed how clean your mouth will feel after this procedure.
6. Drink green tea
Drinking green tea for bad breath helps to reduce bacteria in the mouth.
It is full of antioxidants which kill the Sulphur compounds and blocks their ability to reproduce.
Polyphenols, in green tea, inhibit the bacteria growth that causes tooth decay, cavities and gingivitis.
7. Baking soda
Baking soda is a cheap natural solution for improving the cleanliness in the mouth.
It is successfully used as a natural way to whiten teeth but it can successfully be used to improve the freshness of your breath.
You can make home made toothpastes and mouthwashes using baking soda as a bad breath remedy.
Combine it with other ingredient with antimicrobial properties to make a more potent solution to fight bad breath.
8. Essential oils
Essential oils are plant-based concentrated oils that have antibacterial and antiseptic properties. These properties in essential oils can maintain the mouth healthy and clean.
Many types of essential oils that can be used to treat bad breath. Some more efficient than others. Many of them are already widely used in products designed to fight bad breath.
9. Aloe vera
Aloe vera is a plant with strong antibacterial properties. These properties are widely used to heal small injuries and skin burns by applying the gel over the affected area.
Besides that, the aloe vera gel may also be used as a complementary remedy to get rid of bad breath.
One of its benefits of using aloe vera for bad breath is that it’s not an abrasive ingredient, which means that using it in the mouth doesn’t hurt the tooth enamel and gums. This is great news for those with sensitive gums.
10. Cinnamon
Cinnamon is another natural ingredient that may help in fighting bad breath.
For this scope, you have the option to use cinnamon in all its three forms - powder, sticks or essential oil.
No matter what form of cinnamon you choose, the main ingredient that fights bad breath is the essential oil. The eo has strong antibacterial and antiseptic properties.
Learn how to use cinnamon for bad breath and give it a try.
How to cure bad breath from the stomach
Chronic bad breath may be caused by poor gastrointestinal system or liver disease.
This is a result of consuming too much fat, sugar, alcohol, drugs, and processed food.
The gastrointestinal system begins with your mouth, leads into your throat, and ends down in the intestines. So, if you put garbage into your mouth, it’ll arrive into your stomach. During processing, it will release that bad breath from your stomach.
In the case of chronic bad breath, a doctor should diagnose and treat it.
Yet, the below natural remedies may help in treating the gastrointestinal system, which should alleviate the bad breath.
11. Use supplements or foods rich in Zinc
Zinc is another natural element that neutralizes the concentration of Sulphur gases in the stomach.
To add this component to your oral care use mouthwashes, toothpaste, gums or supplements containing zinc.
Or, eat more zinc-rich foods like gourd seeds, pumpkin, cacao, organ, meat, dark chocolate, etc.
12. Promote gut health using probiotics
Another reason for bad breath may be an unbalanced intestine flora.
To improve its balance, add natural rich in probiotic foods that cure bad breath.
Take a look at this infographic from Dr. Axe that lists probiotic-rich foods.
13. Digestive enzymes
Decreased digestive enzymes can reduce the breakdown of food in the gut, resulting in a foul odor.
Digestive enzymes are found in raw food. So, make them a part of your diet.
Quick natural breath freshener
The below vegetables and herbs are rich in polyphenols. These herbs break down the mild Sulphur compounds in the mouth.
They act as breath fresheners after taking your meal with odorous foods like garlic, onion, meat, fish, etc.
14. Apples
Apples are one of nature’s most effective breath-freshener.
Apples are a crunchy and fibrous type of food that clean the dental plaque from your teeth and it also increases saliva production.
15. Parsley
Parsley is a green color grass that contains high levels of chlorophyll. This compound has antibacterial and deodorizing properties, which neutralizes odor-causing bacteria from your mouth.
Try parsley for bad breath to experience its benefits on yourself.
16. Fennel seeds
Our ancestors ate fennel after eating meat or any other odorous food. And there is a reason for that.
Fennel seeds have deodorizing properties and it helps in the secretion of saliva.
Simply, chew a tablespoon of fennel to freshen your breath.
17. Cloves
Cloves have a strong taste that freshens your breath and makes it kiss-ably sweet.
Chew a few cloves after the meal to deodorize your breath or drink a clove tea.
Boil a cup of water, add a teaspoon of ground cloves and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes.
Drink this tea or use it as a mouthwash 2-3 times per day.
