Seeing if you have bad breath is easier than you might think. And it doesn’t mean trying to breath into your hand to see if you can smell your breath (which usually doesn’t work). But what are some ways to see if you have bad breath?
To start out, we need to realize that bad breath usually comes from either the mouth or back of the throat. More specifically, it can come from your tongue, teeth, saliva, mucus from your sinuses, or from your tonsils.
With these things in mind, let us explore how we can use each of them to diagnose if we have bad breath in that certain area.
Bad breath from your tongue
Why do we have tongue scrapers and other tools to help get rid of bacteria from out tongues? Because bad breath can come from it. And to see if you have bad breath from that area, all you need is a q-tip or cotton swab.
Simply take your q-tip and roll it over the top of your tongue. What you’re trying to get is any of that white or yellow crust/foam on the top of your tongue. Roll it around on your tongue a few times, and then let it dry for a few seconds.
Bring it up close to your nose and take a whiff. Does is smell pleasant, or not so pleasant? After smelling the q-tip, you will soon know whether or not you have bad breath coming from your tongue area.
Bad breath from your teeth
If bits of food get stuck between your teeth, it can lead to bad breath. Take some dental floss, and floss one of your back molars. After doing so, smell the area that went in between your teeth. Smells bad? Probably means you need to floss a little more regularly.
Just a side note, having tooth decay can also lead to bad breath. If you have a toothache or if one of you teeth looks blackened beneath it, you may have a cavity. It might not be a bad idea to see your local dentist.
Flossing may just be the answer to your problem if halitosis is coming from your teeth.
Bad breath from your saliva
This one ain’t for wimps. Deeply moisten your tongue with your saliva, and lick the back of your hand (if you think that’s too gross for you then you could alternatively lick a q-tip or cotton swab). Wave your hand around for a few seconds to help make it dry out faster.
Now take the smell test. Smell like honey and roses? If it smelled something worse than that (unless you don’t like the smell of honey and roses), then it probably means that your saliva is contributing to your bad breath problem.
Now some of you may be wondering that if you lick with your tongue, then isn’t it a tongue problem and not a saliva problem? Remember that in the tongue test, you’re trying to get what is actually on your tongue, and with this test, your trying to put saliva on your tongue, so that you can put it on the back of your hand (if that makes sense).
If saliva is a cause of bad breath, learn to clear it up with this article.
Bad breath from your sinuses
This is a weaker sign that you have bad breath, but it could be a sign none-the-less. Take a tissue and cough up some phlegm from the back of you throat. Cough it right up onto the tissue. Take a minute to let it dry a little, and then smell.
The result can vary. You may just have some really bad smelling snot, which doesn’t overly mean you have bad breath. But on the flip side, it may mean you have a post nasal drip issue that is affecting your bad breath.
Bad breath from your tonsils
Some of the readers may not have tonsils anymore. But those of you that do, this just may be the reason why you have bad breath.
Every once in a while, do you cough up a white or yellow small-looking pellet? Just thought it was part of that toast you at for breakfast that you didn’t get down all the way? Probably not. Most likely, those pellets are tonsil stones, bits of food and waste from bacteria.
Next time you cough one up, try to grab it and stick it on your finger (or on a q-tip or cotton swab). Bring up to your nose, and, you guessed it, take a whiff of what it smells like. It is smells like something you might find in bathrooms (as is often the case), you have a high chance of having bad breath.
If you think the bad breath is coming from your tonsils, take a look at the article Why Do You Get Tonsil Stones.
Other ways to tell if you have bad breath
There are multiple other ways to tell if you have bad breath. Most of them include someone else.
If you have a trusted sibling, spouse, or friend, you can always ask them about your breath. They may also give you a better understanding as to what it smells like, as different smells can lead to certain answers about where the smell is coming from.
If you don’t have trusted friends, you can also get an answer by the reactions of not-so trusted friends, or even acquaintances. If, while you’re talking to someone, that person keeps scrunching their nose, or steps back a little, it may mean that you have a foul odor coming out.
This last one if more of a joke, though if i have time at some point, I do want to try it. Take a small fan and put it on the slowest speed possible. Then breath in deeply and exhale into the fan. Quickly inhale again with your nose, and see what it smells like.
The reason this doesn’t work (or has a hard time working), is that you are used to your breath, so even if it does smell bad, it’s hard for you to notice it.
Comment below and let me know what ways you use to see if you have bad breath.