What cause persistent bad breath ? I am not refering to occasional dining out with food laced with garlic. I worked with some people who have persistent bad breath. It is really bad.

How does one get rid of bad breath permanently?

Could be bad teeth.

An acquaintance of mine uses a tongue scraper a couple of times a day. It seems to work for him. Then again, I really don't ask to verify by smelling his breath. LOL

Seriously though, it was a very noticeable problem prior to using the scraper, and I can't recall the last time since he started using it that I've literally had to take a step back due to the smell.

cleaning the tongue helps, but most people don't floss everyday as is recommended (actually twice a day). when you don't floss, the food decays in between your teeth and causes bad breath. or for very intense bad breath it could be something internal, a certain type of bacteria in the stomach or something like that. that can be addressed through change in diet or medication. i believe eating fresh parseley is a good natural deterrent to intestinal bad breath. maybe eathing fresh peppermint leaves would help too. but bad breath mostly occurs because of diet and neglected hygiene.

Rotting teeth, gum disease, mouith soresk, "leftovers", and/or other diseases in the body. Poor oral hygience is supposed to lead to a lot of other health problems.

Sometimes it's the food people eat too, and no amount of brushing will really make it go away. I have a friend who went through a phase of heating whole cloves of raw garlic everyday, at least 3 or 4 of them. He was doing it for his health. He (his whole person) smelled of garlic so bad that you could tell if he had been in a room (apartment sized) half an hour before you. Luckily he finally quit. <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

Wife is a Dental Hygenist. Here's her "basics".

1. Brushing often is good.
2. Brushing ISN'T enough.
3. You MUST floss and scrape/brush the tongue.
4. Thourgh rinsing is good.
If bad breath doesn't go away, see your Dentist. You may have decay or another condition that can/should be treated.
5.Get your teeth cleaned at least twice a year. If you live near a community college that has a Dental Hygene program, you can get cleaned for little or nothing.
6. Stuff like crowns is expensive, even with insurance. Do your Preventive Maintnance.
Dave




Dave

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsilloliths