Funky breath? You probably have a remedy on hand
Mike Miller
| 2 min read
The three coffees you downed to stay awake in meetings this morning? Funky breath.
That chicken shawarma you ate for lunch? Funky breath.
Angel hair pasta with homemade tomato and garlic sauce for dinner? Oh yes, funky, funky breath.
As tasty as our favorite foods can be, having our breath be a constant reminder of what we’ve eaten throughout the day is unpleasant at best, especially for those around us.
While it seems there’s no shortage of savory selections that bring on the bad breath, Mother Nature has seen fit to supply us with several ways to counteract the effects of our favorite bad-breath-inducing foods. The next time you find yourself with dragon breath, try one of these readily available remedies.
Herbs – That sprig of parsley on your plate is there for more than just decoration. Munch on some parsley post-meal to release its germ fighting compound chlorophyll. Several other fresh herbs can be used in a pinch: coriander, tarragon, eucalyptus and naturally mint all work great.
Citrus fruits – Oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit all work great to stimulate the salivary glands. The saliva produced by their mouthwatering flavor neutralizes the acids in plaque and left over food particles, warding off bad breath.
Spices – There are many options when it comes to spices. You can literally chew or suck on clove, anise, cinnamon, fennel, cardamom or coriander seeds to naturally mask the offending scents and sweeten your breath. If you don’t like chewing on the seeds you can boil them in hot water to create your own mouthwash.
Black Tea – Tea has many health benefits, but who knew it could curb bad breath? With several popular varieties including Earl Grey, Ceylon and Darjeeling it’s easy to employ black tea to halt halitosis. Black tea is a source of polyphenols, antioxidants that prevent the growth of the bacteria that results in bad breath.
Ginger – If you can handle the intensity, chew on a piece of peeled ginger root. Like citrus, it stimulates saliva production and has a fresh, pleasant scent too. Just be sure to rinse your mouth with water after gnawing on it.
Photo credit: fiverlocker
