In the Know for You to Know

When it’s snuggle time with your child, you expect your child’s breath to smell as sweet as they are. While children’s breath can be very sweet, there are times when your toddler to teen’s breath is plain stinky.

Bad breath, also known as Halitosis not uncommon in children. A comprehensive 2014 study found 37.6% of children have bad breath.

As a pediatric dentist I’m routinely asked about this by parents. Most of the time the conversation starts with: Why does my child’s breath smell so bad?, or The white gunk on my child’s tongue smells really bad, or My teenager is really uncomfortable about their breath.

Today I have answers for you about what causes halitosis, how to take care of it and when it needs to be evaluated by your pediatric dentist or your pediatrician.

First Things First, What Is Halitosis?

Halitosis is the medical term for chronic bad breath.

Everyone, even children get bad breath from time to time. Especially after eating stinky foods like garlic, onions or other strong odor foods.

But if bad breath is ongoing or doesn’t resolve, it could be a sign of an oral health issue or something else going on in their body.

Bad breath isn’t usually a sign of something serious. But if it doesn’t get better despite changes you make to address it, it’s time to see the pediatric dentist or pediatrician.

9 Most Common Causes of Bad Breath In Children

1. Mouth Breathing

Everyone breathes through their mouths once in a while, especially when it’s cold and flu season. Even then you’ll notice that your mouth feels dry and chapped.

This is because breathing through the mouth, and especially for children who breathe through their mouths every night when they sleep do dry out their mouth. The drying effect is due to a decrease in saliva production. Less saliva means more dry mouth.

What else can cause mouth breathing? Something stuck in their nose, congestion from a sinus infection, seasonal allergies, or certain medicines like an asthma inhaler. When any of these issues show no signs of resolving anytime soon, it’s time to see your pediatrician.

2. Enlarged Tonsils or Tonsil Stones

Tonsillitis is an infection that makes the tonsils appear red and swollen. It occurs due to viruses or bacteria.

On the other hand, enlarged tonsils and adenoids can cause bad breath when they trap nasal secretions, food particles, and bacteria.

Tonsil stone(s) sit on the surface of the tonsil(s). With time it attaches food and bacteria. Since you can’t reach it to clean, what’s on it stays there and attracts more and more. This is the time to see your pediatrician.

3. Dehydration and Not Enough Saliva

Drinking the right amount of water is important to keep your child’s body hydrated. Being well hydrated means that their salivary glands are producing the correct amount of saliva which in turn helps to cleanse their mouth and teeth, helping them to have fresh breath.

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research states that saliva helps clean the mouth. When children don’t drink enough water, the amount of saliva in their mouth’s decreases. Less saliva leads a decrease the natural ability to clean our mouths. and an increase in the odor causing bacteria in our mouths.

4. Oral Hygiene And Tongue Coating

Poor oral hygiene can cause smelly breath even in children as young as toddlers. The most common places for food debris to hang out is in-between teeth, on the gums, and also on the tongue.

Food debris is more than left over particles of food, it is also the mouth bacteria that attaches onto the food, and all of this together make up what we call dental plaque (or plaque for short).

Ever notice a white coating on your child’s tongue? That’s the plaque that attaches to the natural crevices on their tongue. You know that if the plaque is on the tongue, it’s for sure on the teeth and gums.

5. Cavities, Loose Fillings, Loose Crowns, Dental Infection

Did you know that bacteria causes cavities? Yes they do.

The natural bacteria in the mouth latch onto the plaque. The longer this sits on the teeth and in-between the teeth the more the tooth enamel is broken down, which is how cavities are formed and grow.

Cavities keep growing and the larger it gets the more likely it is to cause an infection. When the infection forms more types of bacteria come to the site and since these bacteria have their own smell the mouth gets even smellier.

If your child has a loose crown or filling, food and bacteria can get trapped underneath, which can also cause bad breath.

6. Gum Disease

The same plaque that sits on the teeth, in-between teeth and on the tongue also sits on the gums and causes their breath to smell like sulfur or rotten eggs. Also known as gingivitis, this causes the gums to become red, swollen and bleed during toothbrushing.

7. Eating Smelly Foods

Some of the foods we really like are good for us and are happy our children want to eat can cause smelly breath. The most talked about are onions and garlic.

So what to do? After enjoying your oniony-garlicky delights, your child can rinse their mouth with water, brush their teeth, or chew sugar-free gum to freshen up their breath.

The sugar free gum helps to stimulate saliva production to naturally help cleanse their mouths.

8. Medical Conditions

Your child may have bad breath if they have certain medical conditions, such as tonsillitis, sinusitis, bronchitis, or other respiratory infections.

If your child has a serious medical condition such as diabetes, kidney disease, gastrointestinal issues, liver disease they may also experience chronic bad breath.

9. An Object In The Nose

Some children, especially toddlers like to put things into their nose, whether it’s a tiny toy, something they find, or bits of food.

When something gets put into the nose, it causes an increase in nasal secretions like a runny nose, inflammation and a bad smell that can be mistaken for bad breath. This is the time to seek immediate medical attention.

What You Can Do To Get Rid Of Your Child’s Bad Breath

Children can have halitosis for several reasons, and the approach to treatment depends on the cause.

Sometimes it’s a trip to your pediatrician to make sure everything is okay; or sometimes it’s your pediatric dentist you contact.

Sometimes what you’re doing at home is the solution to taking care of your child’s bad breath.

4 Tips For Your At Home Oral Hygiene Routine:

1. Good daily oral hygiene –

Toothbrushing twice a day in the morning before going to school and at night after flossing. Remember to brush their tongue and use a fluoride toothpaste to help reduce the risk of cavities;

2. Change their toothbrush –

Toothbrush bristles wear down with regular twice daily use and should be changed every 3 months to make sure your child’s teeth are properly cleaned so their breath can stay fresh;

3. Brush to their favorite tunes

Or use a 2 minute brushing timer;

4. Be rock stars of the toothbrushing world together –

Brush teeth together and establish your daily routine.

What To Remember

Most children and teenagers have bad breath when they wake up. This usually goes away after they have something to eat, drink and brush their teeth.

Key ways to prevent bad breath for your child is to:

• Maintain good oral hygiene including toothbrushing, flossing, tongue brushing,
• Decreasing the habit of mouth breathing by learning how to breathe through their nose,
• Staying well hydrated by drinking healthy amounts of water which also helps maintain adequate flow of saliva.

However, there are times when you’re concerned because your child’s bad breath doesn’t go away no matter what you do. This is the time for you to talk with your pediatric dentist or pediatrician.

Have you noticed your child’s breath lately? Are you worried your child may have bad breath? Has your child asked you how their breath smells? Tell Us, We’d really like to know! Send us an email at kidstoothhotline@proton.me Like Us on Facebook

More tips? We have lots. We’re here just for kids!