What are the Possible Causes of Bad Breath?

What Causes Bad Breath?

Bad breath can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'very minor' to 'life-threatening'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.

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Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose bad breath, we could:

Research the topic
Find a doctor with the time
Use a diagnostic computer system.

The process is the same, whichever method is used.

Step 1: List all Possible Causes

We begin by identifying the disease conditions which have "bad breath" as a symptom. Here are six possibilities:

Mercury Toxicity
Low Carbohydrate Diet Consequences
General Toxicity
Tonsil Stones
Cigarette Smoke Damage
Stomach Ulcers

Step 2: Build a Symptom Checklist

We then identify all possible symptoms and risk factors of each possible cause, and check the ones that apply:

moderate meal-induced pain

poorly-removed amalgams

vision disturbances

recent light tobacco smoking

history of herbicide exposure

moving white lines across nails

much reduced sense of smell

having trouble concentrating

gums that bleed easily

metallic taste in mouth

occasional rashes

nasal congestion

... and more than 70 others

Step 3: Rule Out or Confirm each Possible Cause

A differential diagnosis of your symptoms and risk factors finds the likely cause of bad breath:

Cause	Probability	Status
Cigarette Smoke Damage	93%	Confirm
Mercury Toxicity	57%	Possible
Tonsil Stones	25%	Unlikely
Stomach Ulcers	0%	Ruled out
Low Carbohydrate Diet Consequences	0%	Ruled out
General Toxicity	0%	Ruled out

* This is a simple example to illustrate the process

Arriving at a Correct Diagnosis

The Analyst™ is our online diagnosis tool that learns all about you through a straightforward process of multi-level questioning, providing diagnosis at the end.

In the Mouth/Oral Symptoms section of the questionnaire, The Analyst™ will ask the following question about bad breath:

Do you have bad breath?

Possible responses:

→ No / don't know
→ Occasionally, minor
→ Often minor or occasionally moderate
→ Often moderate or occasionally very bad
→ Often very bad

Based on your response to this question, which may indicate no indication of bad breath, minor bad breath, significant bad breath or severe bad breath, The Analyst™ will consider possibilities such as:

Effects of a Low Carbohydrate Diet

The acetone resulting from a state of ketosis escapes through the lungs – giving Atkins Diet followers, for example, what one weight-loss expert calls "rotten-apple breath." [Health 19 (1996): p.102] The other ketones have to be excreted by the kidneys. In a study funded by Dr. Atkins himself, most of the people that could stick with the diet reported headaches and halitosis (bad breath).

Gastric/Peptic/Duodenal Ulcers

General Detoxification Requirement

Mercury Toxicity (Amalgam Illness)

Tonsil Stones

A medical study conducted in 2007 found a strong association between tonsilloliths and bad breath. Among those with bad breath, 75% of the subjects had tonsilloliths while only 6% of subjects with normal breath had tonsilloliths.

Cigarette Smoke Damage

Concerned or curious about your health? Try The Analyst™