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- Fruity breath: People with diabetes mellitus can have breath that smells like acetone. Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease in which the blood sugar rises (hyperglycemia), either because the pancreas can’t make the insulin hormone or because the body can’t use insulin properly.
- Fetid, stinky breath: Syphilis — a sexually transmitted infection caused by Treponema pallidum bacteria — can make a patient’s breath smell really bad.
- “Breath of a dead person”: Liver insufficiency or liver failure is a life-threatening situation in which the liver is unable to excrete bilirubin (waste material of liver) or filter blood or perform any of its functions.
- Sour or acidic breath: After the mouth, tummy and intestine problems are the most common reasons for bad breath. Gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, is a condition in which the sphincter muscle at the lower end of the food pipe (oesophagus) is unable to close.
- Is Bad Breath A Sign of Serious Illness?
- What Usually Causes Bad Breath?
- How to Tell If You Have Bad Breath
- How to Treat Bad Breath
- How Do You Know If Your Bad Breath Is Serious?
- What Illnesses Give You Bad Breath?
Most cases of halitosis are temporary and treatable, but sometimes bad breath can be a symptom of a more serious illess, according to Dr. Kami Hoss, dentist and author of “If Your Mouth Could Talk: An In-Depth Guide to Oral Health and Its Impact on Your Entire Life." “Your mouth is the opening to your body. ... It's a reflection of not only what is...
The most common cause of bad breath is poor oral hygiene. "Our mouth is filled with millions of microbes, and these make up our oral microbiome," says Hoss. This includes good bacteria, which help keep our mouth healthy and aid digestion, as well as bad bacteria. “In a healthy mouth, there’s a balance,” says Hoss, adding that proper oral hygiene sh...
Bad breath isn't always obvious to the breather, says Hoss. Despite the close proximity of the nose to the mouth, it's hard to tell how our breath smells because we get so used to it from breathing, he explains. When a person has halitosis, they may not be aware at all, he adds — it might even be pointed out by a partner, friend or colleague, which...
If you have bad breath, the first line of defense is good oral hygiene, Hoss explains. "You want to eliminate all the things that are potentially causing it from an oral health issue," says Hoss. That means brushing and flossingevery morning and night, scraping or cleaning the tongue daily and using an alkaline mouthwash. Alcohol-based or antimicro...
Can be a symptom of an underlying medical problem? Yes. "If you're doing all that and it's not getting resolved, then you have to look deeper and see if you have other serious health issues going on," says Hoss. In some cases, oral hygiene alone won’t cut it because it’s not treating the root cause, he adds. When bad breath becomes chronic and you'...
Diabetes
People who are diabetic or pre-diabetic may experience a peculiar smelling breath: Think fruit or nail polish remover, Hoss explains. "The body, because of the lack of insulin, can't burn sugar, so it starts burning fat instead and produces these chemicals called ketones," says Hoss. When blood sugar levels aren't managed, ketones can build up and reach high levels in the blood. The result is a breath that smells fruity or like acetone (the main ingredient in nail polish remover), because ace...
Acid reflux
Sometimes, bad breath can be caused by an issue bubbling up from the stomach. Acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux, occurs when acid in the stomach flows back up the esophagus, says Hoss. Acid reflux can happen to anyone, but the more severe and chronic form is called gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD— which affects an estimated 20% of the U.S. population. "Just imagine all that acid and all the food that’s hasn’t been digested yet, it just gets pushed up your esophagus and in your mo...
Kidney problems
“If your kidneys aren’t functioning correctly, they can’t filter out certain minerals out of your blood properly,” says Hoss. The kidneys work to remove toxins and other waste products from the blood, which are then excreted in your urine, per the Cleveland Clinic. When a person has kidney problems or kidney disease, these toxins build up in the body and circulate in the bloodstream, says Hoss. “This can make your breath smell like ammonia or urine,” he adds. Ammoniais found in many household...
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- Persistent body odor. If a shower can’t help your body odor, it could be a sign of a magnesium deficiency. “The mineral magnesium helps in ‘deodorizing’ our internal organs and also helps with our body odor,” says cardiologist Robert Segal, MD, co-founder of LabFinder.
- More BO. If you have a digestive disorder such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, you could be short on zinc. Zinc helps your body manage waste and toxins, says Dr. Segal; when a digestive diorder is present, the body may not absorb the mineral as it should.
- Rotten-egg breath. If a floss, brush, or piece of minty gum can’t cut the odor, you may have a bacterial infection, Dr. Segal warns. A common bacteria called H. pylori that can take up residence in your digestive system could be to blame.
- Rotten-apple breath. “When we don’t have enough insulin in our body, our liver then creates the chemical ketones, which are our body’s way to compensate for the lack of insulin,” says Dr. Segal.
Jul 27, 2017 · fatigue. loss of breath. nausea. vomiting. a sweet or fruity smell on the breath or skin. Treatment involves increasing the dosage of insulin and replacing lost fluids. Diabetic ketoacidosis is a complication of diabetes 3. Ketones–byproducts of the breakdown of fat–begin to build-up in the body with negative effects.
Feb 3, 2023 · Bad breath can arise from a problem in your mouth or throat, or from metabolic processes. Depending on the cause, your breath may smell sweet, sour, rotten, musty, fishy, or like ammonia.
There are several potential reasons why you may be experiencing a sweet smell: Diabetes : High blood sugar levels can lead to a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis, which can cause a sweet fruity odor in the breath. Sinus Infections : Certain types of sinus infections can produce a sweet smell due to the presence of bacteria or fungi.
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The smell is different from halitosis, or bad breath caused by poor oral hygiene. The breath of someone with uncontrolled diabetes, for example, may have a sweet or fruity odor. It's a sign of a life-threatening condition called ketoacidosis. Liver disease may cause breath with a musty, ammonia-like smell.