mpkle wrote:yes their does seem to be white stuff on my tongue but not that bad;ive licked the back of my wrist and didnt smell anything.I just have this sense that their is somthing on my breathbut i swear its not from my tongue although from reading these topics if you have halitosis you can brush scrape rinse and nothing works. Is this really the case.Ive asked people and they say its nothing but i dont know who to believe Ive put it in my head so bad now i dont even know the truth myself;but have never tried the tongue scraper will get one tomorrow.have you ever tried closys 2 tooth paste.
Some people have a white coating on their tongue without having bad breath, its just normal for some people (eg after taking antibiotics).
I too dont smell almost anything when I lick my wrist, it just smells like normal saliva, nothing bad although sometimes it smells a little bad but rarely.
Yes if you have halitosis you can brush, scrape etc and nothing helps. Because for the most of us its not only the tongue that bad breath comes from. Sometimes its like it comes from the back of the throat or from the nose/sinuses. However brushing and scraping helps (get a TUNG brush NOT a tongue scraper. Scrapers only scrape the surface of the tongue and remove only like half the stinky stuff and probably even less). Depends on your causes it could last from a few minutes to a few hours.
Also dry mouth worsens bad breath. Mouthwashes that have alcohol (and alcohol in general) dries your mouth so try getting a mouthwash that doesnt have alcohol (although I myself still use listerine which does have alcohol and im fine with it).
First of all how do you know you have bad breath? You need to make sure you DO have it and if you do how does it smell and how bad it is.
It's true for some people that its just "all in their head". Bad breath is a hard thing to detect yourself because you can't smell your breath 100% and if you do smell it a little its still not what others smell. Or sometimes it is not really chronic halitosis and it could be some problem with a simpe solution. Like for example if it is a dental problem.
Here are a few causes of bad breath (random order) that come to my mind (some are related/caused by each other)
1. Dry mouth
2. Dental problems
3. Gingivitis/Periodontitis
4. Post nasal drip
5. Sinusitis (chronic and acute)
6. Tonsilitis (tonsil stones)
7. Allergies (see no.5)
8. Nasal blockage (e.g. deviated septum or enlarged turbinates due to allergies. nasal blockages can cause chronic sinusitis and post nasal drip)
9. Digestion problems
Each of the causes has its own smell. E.g. gingivitis/dental bad breath is a completely different smell to what you have from e.g. sinusitis however its hard to describe a smell...
Things you need to do:
1. Go to a dentist and make sure that your gum and dental health is perfect.
2. Go to an ENT (ear nose throad doc) and have him check your tonsils, sinuses and nasal passages. Don't be shy and tell him about your problem so he can help.