Say you are at a party and all of a sudden you get that stinging feeling in your throat. You scrunch up your face, look around the room and walk to a place where nobody can see you as you try to swallow away that biting liquid. Your loosen your collar, swallow some more of your wine, and try to get back into the conversation. Yet, when you do get a circle and join in the conversation, people start to back away from you, pretend to scratch their nose, and claim to be needed elsewhere. You can’t help but wonder if your recent bout of heartburn is related to your recent unpopularity?
One way that you can check if you have bad breath (if your best friend isn’t at the ready), is to lick the inside of your wrist and let it dry for a few seconds and then smell it. If there is an odor, then your breath isn’t as fresh as it should be.
If you are experiencing bad breath, or halitosis, then part of your problem might be either related to, or a direct result of acid reflux/GERD.
Most experts, medical and naturopathic alike will tell you that bad breath is caused by what you eat, lack of saliva swishing around in your mouth, stress, dehydration, and stomach activity, i.e. acid indigestion. Since many people experience acid reflux in their sleep, chances are good that morning breath isn’t just a lack of saliva activity, but is related to GERD.
Most commentators speaking on bad breath list acid reflux as a major cause, in addition to the items mentioned above. It makes sense really. It stands to reason that acidic liquid rising up from your stomach is not going to smell pretty, and if that is getting up to your throat, through a loosening in the collapsible valve at the tip of your stomach, it’s going to make your breath smell pretty foul.
Not only that, but many of the factors that contribute to bad breath, are also causal factors for acid reflux. The foods that you eat are a major contributor to bad breath, like spicy or garlicky foods, which are also a major contributor to acid reflux. Stress is also a cause for both upsets.
It stands to reason then, that by counteracting the causal factors of GERD, you will also reduce your chances of having bad breath, not only in striking what may be the heart of your problem, but you’ll combat one or both of these ailments as well.
Contrary to popular belief, making changes to your diet and stress levels aren’t as difficult as some of the makers of pharmaceuticals would like you to believe. They would prefer you to think that a few changes in your diet, or a simple exercise plan will mean re-vamping your life entirely, but this is simply not the case.
Long term solutions are just that—long term. So, make the changes, but make them slowly, incorporating them into your life in small steps so that the changes don’t seem too drastic, making them easier to swallow (so to speak) and more likely steps that you will stick with.
