Oral dysbiosis

With bad breath that cannot be fixed with over the counter mouthwashes or mints, there is a serious oral dysbiosis. The oral cavity is colonized with billions of microorganisms, just like the human gut. A serious dysbiosis can cause periodontitis, gingivitis, cavities, and oral malodour. Of course the by-product of bad oral pathogens smelly compounds like volatile sulfur compounds (hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan), and volatile organic compounds (putrescine, cadaverine). 

Everyone has heard of the gut microbiome and how important it is to human wellness. The oral microbiome is equally important. And in fact, billions of oral microbiota a day are transferred to your gut when you swallow. A lot of things can throw your oral microbiome off. There is antibiotic use, oral antiseptic use, diet, stress, poor dental hygiene, and even breathing through your mouth at night. When your oral microbiome is off it can cause cavities, gingivitis, and yes Bad Breath. When you allow the bad bugs overtake the good ones, that is when problems arise.

For those of us with chronic bad breath, it is a difficult task to get your microbiome in balance but not impossible. It takes a lot of will power because, quite frankly, you are going to have to change your diet. All of those sweets and carbohydrates you have been craving are going to have to come to a halt. Think of it this way, it’s not you who are craving these things. It is your bad bugs. And they have been winning. Yes, they have. They have been winning for a very long time. It is a hard pill to swallow, I know. I know all too well. I was trying to get rid of my bad breath but I was doing everything but cutting out the sweets. I would always think “Why do i have to cut out sweets? Nobody else does, and they don’t have what I have.” Unfortunately we are not everybody else. And it will be good for us in the long run. We will be the most healthy of the bunch.

Why Mouth Breathing is Bad

The bad bugs strive in an acidic and dry environment. Breathing through your mouth creates a more acidic environment. You know when people have coffee breath? It’s sort of like that. Coffee is very acidic and creates an environment for the bad bugs to grow.

I visited my Holistic Dentist who could tell right away that I was mouth breathing at night. She told me tape my mouth when I slept. So I did. I put a piece of tape on my mouth. But I noticed I would wake up in a panic because I could not breathe. It was then that I realized I had OSA (Obstructive Sleep Apnea). It’s the condition where your tongue falls to the back of your throat at night stopping your air intake and you wake yourself up by taking a big gasp of air through your mouth, sounding like a huge snore or gasp. I’m sure you’ve heard people sleep like that. So with the tape over my mouth, I could not wake myself up with a big gasp of air. My brain woke itself up in a flight or flight response. I literally felt like I was being chased by a bear. I would wake up two hours after I fell asleep in a startled panic thinking, ‘It’s already morning?’ I looked at the clock and it was only two hours after I fell asleep. It happened three to four times that night. I would think ‘Why am I so awake each time?’ In order for me to breathe through my mouth again, I had to correct my sleep apnea. And that is where my Holistic Dentist came into play. She partners with Vivos. They make a device to correct your mouth structure, similar to how a chiropractor fixes your back. The device fixes your bite over two years. I’ve never worn braces, but I alike it to braces as well. You only wear the device at night. They also work with you to do Myo Functional Therapy which strengthens your tongue muscle and train your tongue to position on the rough of your mouth. I’ve slept so well, and I am able to mouth tape throughout the night. Mark Burhenne, DDS talks about mouth taping on his youtube channel and how important it is to breathe through your nose.

GERD (gastro-esophageal reflux disease)

 Gastroesophageal reflux disease can also cause dysbiosis of the mouth. Bad bugs strive in an acidic environment and the acidity of the stomach goes up into the oral cavity. Whatever resides in our gastrointestinal system can also reside in our oral cavity by this constant regurgitation. Mouth Breathing while asleep can also cause gastroesophageal regurge which is another reason to do mouth taping. The mouth and the gastrointestinal system are connected so it is important to also take gut probiotics as well. Diet is also key to feed our oral microbiota as well as our gut flora.

Oral Hygiene