Having bad breath can change your life for the worse, both personally and professionally. And the grim truth is people most often wont tell you; theyll just gossip and snicker behind your back. Theres no doubt about it - bad breath is bad news. However, there is a way to handle this issue. But the first thing you must do is discover the root cause of this problem.

The Most Common Causes of Bad Breath

Do you suffer from morning breath? Many people who suffer from bad breath have discovered that the morning is the worst time for them. If youre one of these people then you wake up with a foul odor emanating from your mouth that subsides after the morning brushing of your teeth. But as the days wears on, that smell slowly crawls back into your mouth and people are once again avoiding you like you have the plague.

Occasionally the cause of bad breath could be due to what you ingest or put in your mouth. We all know what someones breath smells like after theyve eaten a meal that included garlic or onions. Pungent food is a classic cause of foul breath. And so is smoking. If you just love cigars or cant go a day without taking a puff of your favorite brand of cigarette, this will cause bad breath for sure. And lets not forget everyones favorite vice - alcohol. Beverages containing alcohol are well known to cause unpleasant breath.

Masking Wont Help in the Worst Cases

People often try to cover up their bad breath by using various fresheners. These often take the form of gums, mints and sprays. These fresheners can cover up the odor for several minutes or maybe an hour. If the smell was caused by something you ate, then this tactic might work since the foul breath is only temporary to begin with. But if the chief cause is more serious such as poor oral hygiene, the fresheners will only mask the problem and not eliminate it. The terrible breath will only return.