Natural Remedies for Bad Breath

Natural Remedies for Bad Breath

Chinese natural remedies for bad breath are based on time-tested, traditional herbal formulas. They work because each person's remedy can be tailored to match their specific problem. This is vital for the effectiveness of the remedy as each of us is a unique individual. Two people may have bad breath but each one has additional symptoms and signs that the other may not. Therefore each person needs a different remedy even though their chief complaint (bad breath) is the same.

Cause of Bad Breath

Poor dental hygiene can cause bad breath but in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) bad breath from stomach heat is the most common scenario. What is meant by stomach heat? Anyone who excessively consumes foods and drinks which have a hot nature can develop excess heat in their stomach. Heat by nature rises, leading to bad breath. Hot-natured foods and drinks include fried, spicy foods, alcohol and coffee.

Bad Breath in Infants

Bad breath in infants and bad breath in kids is nearly always diet related, i.e. excess intake of foods and drinks which are either hot in nature or foods that clog the digestive system leading to heat. Western kids are often fed too many foods which TCM considers to be heavy and fluid-generating or "damp". These foods like cheese and peanut butter tend to clog up the digestive system of small kids and infants. Basically, TCM emphasizes a natural diet of mostly cooked foods eaten warm. If your child has bad breath it is likely he/she has been eating too much hot or damp food or simply overeating everything which also impairs digestion and causes bad breath.

The Liver and Bad Breath

Bad breath from stomach heat can also have an underlying liver component. As explained elsewhere on this site, e.g. acid reflux article, in TCM the liver and stomach have a close relationship. Emotional stress primarily affects the liver and because of the liver's relationship with the stomach, and digestion, liver imbalance can disrupt stomach and digestive function. This makes problems like bad breath, acid reflux and ulcers more likely to occur. The solution? If you suffer from emotional stress, especially excess anger, frustration or irritability, you need to find ways to stop the situations causing it and find ways to release these emotions before they build up.

To sum up, in TCM, bad breath is mostly caused by stomach heat from diet and stress via the liver.

Diagnosis

However, TCM does recognize other causes of bad breath. To know which herbal remedy is right for you it is important you get a Chinese medical diagnosis - as explained elsewhere on this site.

If you need help finding a TCM practitioner for a diagnosis and herbal treatment see the FAQ section (No.9). And any questions about Chinese natural remedies for bad breath or diet for bad breath let me know.