WARNING: The Embarrassing Bodies website contains images of an explicit medical nature and nudity in a medical context.

Embarrassing Bodies , 9:00pm Friday 19th March 2010 on Channel 4. Catch up for free »

Conditions

Halitosis

Bacteria from bad breath

There’s no shame in having halitosis (or bad breath, as it is more commonly known). In fact, 95% of us suffer from bad breath at some time in our lives, and one in four adults suffers from bad breath on a regular basis. A quick way to test the potency of your breath is to lick the inside of your wrist with the back of your tongue, let it dry for a few seconds, and then smell. If you subsequently find yourself recoiling in horror from a foul stench, then you should perhaps consider visiting your dental hygienist. Bad breath usually stems from poor oral hygiene (including neglecting the tongue area, which hosts the bacteria that cause bad breath). However, smoking and drinking too much alcohol can also contribute. Sprays, mints and chewing gum will only temporarily mask your bad breath, whereas improving your oral hygiene will ultimately pay-off.

If you’re suffering from any of the conditions featured on this site and want to apply for an onscreen consultation with one of the EB team then you can find more details here >>

Remember that you should always check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.

Comments and Questions

You can share your experiences and thoughts with other Embarrassing Bodies site-users below. Comments & Questions are reviewed by moderators, but if you see anything on the site that worries you, please report it and one of our moderators will look at it as soon as possible.
Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.

I have had bad breath in the past and I think it's better now (although how can I tell how my own breath smells?) as I have been using the toothpastes etc from Dr Speizer - an Australian based bad breath clinic which you can have the products shipped to the UK from. It is expensive but as far as I'm concerned it's worth the price.





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

I am 17 years old and have been suffering from really bad breath ever since i can remember. I brush my teeth twice a day, plus use a tongue scraper for at least 5 minutes per every brush. But after 20 minutes or so my breath becomes smelly again. I really dont know what else i can do, its really affecting my confidence when speaking to people. HELP!





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

im only 15, and i have bad breath. it is destroying my life. thats no exxageration, i have to go to school with people teasing me all the time and it keeps getting worse. i have excellent oral hygeine and brush my teeth,tongue and make sure my gums are healthy every day. please help me, it would mean the absalute world!





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

i have suffered from really bad breath for 13 years its ruining my life its realyy bad my stomach is really sweeled up i look pregnant . ive been to the doctors who said use a mouthwash which ive done i brush my teeth everyday go to the dentist regulary every 6 months an theres nothing wrong with my dental hygene .ive been to my doctors i dont no how many times an he just says some people just have it . im due to go on holiday with my childrten this year to spain our first abroad holiday i need to have sumthing to help . i no this is not normal can anybody help .





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

i feel your pain, i have suffered since i was a child, i was ridiculed in school because of it, & it goes on to haunt me in my adult life. I have excellent oral hygiene & my teeth are pearly white. to add to this my little boy has also had noticably bad breath since a young age. I have tried allsorts of mouth washes, been to dentists,ENT clinic & noone seems to have an answer. This is ruining my life !!!

I have tonsil stones and it's really affecting my confidence and my life. I've had them for about 2 years now, spoke to my gp about it but they didn't offer any help other than checking my throat which at the time revealed nothing. I force the stones out by pushing on the back of my throat but it bleeds and becomes very swollen and sore. Does anyone have any advice or help on this very disgusting and embarassing problem please?





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

I went through exactly the same thing and found that it was because I am dairy intolerant. Very soon after going onto Soya milk, butter, yoghurts, etc., they disappeared, and an unexpected bonus has been that I can also breath a lot better when I am out running/exercising. Give it a try, it has turned my life around. Good luck.

i am62 and i get a rearly bad smell from my noise like amonia





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your answer.


Please don't swear or be rude in your answers, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting answers. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

I have had bad breath since i became aware of it almost 25 years now.i believe poor hygiene is not the cause since i brush my teeth after every meal i.e four times a day and as someone said earlier the smell is back within 2 minutes.Doctors please give me a proper cause for this and a solution too as i dread talking when am at work because am aware of people holding their noses or ignoring me.PLEASE HELP ME.





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

i have had the same problem and its ruining my life ive had it for years and its time to act now.ive had micky tacking and paranoid and poeple holding there nose when i talk.ive had it for years,please help me too its makin me deppressed and ruining my marrage.the smell is vile.PLEASE HELP IVE BEEN TO DOCTORS AND THEY SAY GET MOUTHWASHbut it dont do nothing i need to go back ive eve thought of having all my bottom teeth out,there not rotton but i may have gum desiese i dont know,it may be my tounge.

hi i'm 18 years old and i get really really bad breath. i brush my teeth and tongue as much as i can but it doesn't help much as my breath still smell a few minutes late. i'm embarresed to talk to people close up. i always have to buy atleast 2-3packets of mints a day when i go to college because i'm ashamed of this problem. also i have tonsils problem, i have been doctors and they've gave me antibiotics but they haven't helped, i went back and they said it was viral but i have white bacteria on the back of my through on my tongue and their inflated red. i've been to the dentist to but all he gave me was some mouthwash which made my tongue feel numb which didnt help at all. please help





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

i'm 20 and have tonsil stones. its making my life a misery i'm to scared to speak and wont go near my partner. its really effecting my life. Does anyone know if when i go to see an ENT doctor they can just remove my tonsils for me? I just want my tonsils out!!! ASAP!!





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

How do you clear tonsil stones? And what ae they?

I get loads of tonsil stones, am quite used to pushing them out every few days - can really tell when they are brewing cos i get a weird taste in my mouth, then time to go home and clear those nasties out!!! an ex once told me i had weird breath, well not any more!!





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.


Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

Replying to Jenny's comment - I suffer from these also and have tried many ways to get these "stones" out - how do you push them out? At the minute I can't shift them and am paranoid to speak to people in case they smell bad breath - I've had them since Nov





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your comment.



Please don’t swear or be rude in your comments, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting comments. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines

It looks like no one else has asked this question, so please fill in the rest of your details below.





This will be published. Surnames, nicknames or usernames are not allowed


Your email address will be kept confidential and will NOT be published – it is only being collected here in case Channel 4 need to contact you in relation to your answer.



Please don't swear or be rude in your questions, as they will not be added to the site. Please do not use your full name when posting questions. If in doubt, refer to the community guidelines

By posting on this website you are agreeing to abide by our community guidelines


Important Notice

The information provided on this website (including any NHS Choices medical information) is for use as information or for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical care by a qualified doctor or other qualified healthcare professional. We do not warrant that any information included within this site will meet your health or medical requirements. This Embarrassing Bodies site does not provide any medical or diagnostic services so you should always check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.


If you want to embed our videos in your site, read our embedding T&Cs here


More Information

  1. Quick Health Advice: Bad Breath

    In Videos - Dr McKenna gives out information on how to test for bad breath and…

  2. Body Check: Tongue

    In Videos - Dr Christian talks about tongue abnormalities and how to check for…

  3. Episode 8 - Oral

    In Episodes - This week's episode includes a man whose armpits are making his lif…

  4. Episode 4

    In Episodes - Episode 4's patients included one suffering from the penis bending…

  5. Consultation: Second Adult Circumcision

    In Videos - Dr Jessen examines a patient in need of a new circumcision

  6. Doctor Responses: Chlamydia

    In Videos - Dr Christian answers your most frequently asked questions about Chl…

  7. Dr Priya Manickavasagar

    Doctor Info - Find out more about Dr Priya.

  8. Dr James Russell

    Doctor Info - Find out more about Dr James Russell.

  9. Consultation: Soreness on the Penis

    In Videos - A patient is examined for soreness around his penis

  10. Dr Pixie McKenna

    Doctor Info - Find out more about Dr Pixie.

  11. Dr Dawn Harper

    Doctor Info - Find out more about Dr Dawn.

  12. Dr Christian Jessen

    Doctor Info - Find out more about Dr Christian

  13. How To Check Your Testicles

    In Videos - Dr Harper's guide to how to self-check your balls against testicula…

  14. Bodies Behaving Badly

    In Episodes - Episode 1 of Embarrassing Teenage Bodies examines conditions includ…

  15. Breasts

    In Episodes - In this second of four specials, the Embarrassing Illnesses doctors…


Be on the Show

Have you been inspired by the patients in the current series to seek help for your problem? Apply to be on the show here >