Bad Breath And Gut Health

Author's Bio: Katie Bailey, MS, RD, LD, FNC

Hi everyone. Welcome back to our channel.

Bad Breath, also known as Halitosis, is a common problem that is an embarrassing social issue. Many people associate bad breath with poor oral hygiene, but there is a direct link between bad breath and gut health that is often overlooked.

So in today's video, I'll be addressing what are the causes of Bad breath?

What is the oral gut access and how is bad breath connected to our gut health?

And what are some potential solutions for bad breath?

Hi, I'm Katie Bailey. I'm a gut health dietitian at Oswald Digestive Clinic, where we help individuals improve and resolve their bothersome gut issues. If you're interested in learning more about gut health, I'll link our free guide Five Ways to Improve Your Gut Health here.

Alright, let's get started on today's topic.

[Video Transcript Below Video - it is the same information]

So what are the causes of bad breath?

The first and probably the most common we think of is poor oral hygiene. So inadequate brushing and flossing is going to lead to food or plaque buildup. Now, bacteria in the mouth actually digest those food particles or break them down, and that produces byproducts that can cause odor.

The second one is dry mouth. So saliva helps to naturally cleanse the mouth and reduced saliva production that happens with dry mouth can disrupt the oral microbiome because saliva helps to not only maintain moisture, but it maintains a proper pH and actually has antimicrobial compounds.

The next thing is having a conditions like GERD or sibo. Both of these conditions are related to poor digestion, so that reflux from GERD or the fermentation of your food in SIBO can produce odors that can cause bad breath.

And then lastly, oral or gut dysbiosis. The dysbiosis is an imbalance of the good and bad bacteria either in your gut or in the oral cavity. And a overgrowth of bad bacteria can lead to bad breath. What is the oral gut access and how is bad breath connected to gut health? So the oral gut access refers to the relationship and the communication between the oral cavity and our GI tract. While the oral and gut microbiomes are distinct, they do share common bacteria and the gut microbiome can be influenced by oral microbes and vice versa.

The oral cavity is the main entry point of microbes entering the body. And under certain conditions that oral bacteria can travel to the gut, potentially influencing the gut microbiome. The transfer of microbes can impact both oral and gut health and lead to things like dysbiosis. Now, research shows that dysbiosis is associated with various oral issues, including bad breath. Therefore, experiencing frequent bad breath could indicate underlying gut health issues as we know that the oral microbiome can significantly impact our gut microbiome.

So now that we know what can cause bad breath and how it's related to our gut,

What are some potential solutions for bad breath?

So to improve bad breath, it is essential to have a healthy oral and gut microbiome. So some things that you may want to consider is the first thing, practicing good oral hygiene. So making sure that you're flossing and brushing your teeth regularly using a tongue scraper. Avoid overusing mouthwash, especially ones that contain alcohol as that can disrupt that balance of good and bad bacteria in the gut.

Try oil pulling. This is going to help to boost that oral microbiome as well as reduce inflammation in the gut. You want to adopt a balanced nutrient dense diet that's rich in fiber and polyphenols and low in processed foods and added sugars as that can disrupt the balance of the good and bacteria in the mouth.

Consider probiotic rich foods or incorporating a supplement that's going to be both beneficial for your oral health and your gut health. And then oral probiotics, including Lactobacillus Root Eye and Lactobacillus Breus have been shown to be helpful in the management of bad breath, and it's recommended to take oral probiotics before bed without food so that they can adhere to the oral cavity.

The next thing you want to do is to make sure you are breathing through your nose when you sleep. This is going to help to boost saliva production and prevent dry mouth, which helps to maintain the proper pH in your mouth. You also want to be drinking plenty of water so that your body can produce enough saliva. You could also try herbal toothpaste or mouthwash. Dental cient is a good option. It contains botanicals and essential oils that can help really the oral microbial diversity.

And then also the last thing is to really address any root causes of gut dysfunction. So if you have any of the conditions we talked about before where you have GERD or sibo, poor digestion in general, or either oral or gut dysbiosis, it's going to be really important to make sure you address those root causes and fix them in order to improve the bad breath.

Now, by implementing these strategies, you can help improve bad breath and support your oral microbiome, which in turn is also going to support your gut health because of the connection between the two systems.

Bad Breath And Gut Health

To wrap up our topic for today, maintaining a balanced oral and gut microbiome is essential for preventing and improving bad breath. Bad breath isn't just an oral hygiene issue. It's often a sign of deeper gut health issues that may need to be addressed. If this is something you are struggling with and want some assistance, we would be happy to help.

That's it for today's video. If you like this video, please hit the like button and subscribe for more nutrition videos. If you're interested in working with our clinic, you could click the link here to schedule an appointment. We do take insurance. You can find more information about that on our website.

Thank you for watching. I'll see you next time. Bye.

If you'd like to explore any of this information further or obtain an individualized nutrition plan, you can schedule an initial appointment at our clinic.  We also take insurance and some of our clients get full coverage, which is great.

Or you can just start by downloading our FREE GUIDE: 5 WAYS TO IMPROVE GUT HEALTH  

Curious about what type of gut you have? Take our Free Quiz now!