ProDermix® Institute of Probiotics brings you

excerpts of five studies and research compilations regarding causes and remedies

for bad breath!

NOTE! ProDermix® chewables contain only Lactobacillus species of probiotics.

A comprehensive support of your gastrointestinal system requires a formula that contains both Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria species.

We recommend using APD 1 or APD 2 and APD 30 on a daily basis.

The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Symptoms and causesBy Mayo Clinic Staff

Symptoms

Bad breath odors vary, depending on the source or the underlying cause. Some people worry too much about their breath even though they have little or no mouth odor, while others have bad breath and don›t know it. Because it›s difficult to assess how your own breath smells, ask a close friend or relative to confirm your bad-breath questions.

When to see a doctor

If you have bad breath, review your oral hygiene habits. Try making lifestyle changes, such as brushing your teeth and tongue after eating, using dental floss, and drinking plenty of water.

If your bad breath persists after making such changes, see your dentist. If your dentist suspects a more serious condition is causing your bad breath, he or she may refer you to a physician to find the cause of the odor.

Causes

Most bad breath starts in your mouth, and there are many possible causes. They include:

• Food. The breakdown of food particles in and around your teeth can increase bacteria and cause a foul odor. Eating certain foods, such as onions, garlic and spices, also can cause bad breath. After you digest these foods, they enter your bloodstream, are carried to your lungs and affect your breath.

• Tobacco products. Smoking causes its own unpleasant mouth odor. Smokers and oral tobacco users are also more likely to have gum disease, another source of bad breath.

• Poor dental hygiene. If you don›t brush and floss daily, food particles remain in your mouth, causing bad breath. A colorless, sticky film of bacteria (plaque) forms on your teeth. If not brushed away, plaque can irritate your gums and eventually form plaque-filled pockets between your teeth and gums (periodontitis). Your tongue also can trap bacteria that produce odors. Dentures that aren›t cleaned regularly or don’t fit properly can harbor odor-causing bacteria and food particles.

Study A

• Dry mouth. Saliva helps cleanse your mouth, removing particles that cause bad odors. A condition called dry mouth or xerostomia (zeer–o-STOE-me-uh) can contribute to bad breath because production of saliva is decreased. Dry mouth naturally occurs during sleep, leading to “morning breath,” and it worsens if you sleep with your mouth open. Chronic dry mouth can be caused by a problem with your salivary glands and some diseases.

• Medications. Some medications can indirectly produce bad breath by contributing to dry mouth. Others can be broken down in the body to release chemicals that can be carried on your breath.

• Infections in your mouth. Bad breath can be caused by surgical wounds after oral surgery, such as tooth removal, or as a result of tooth decay, gum disease or mouth sores.

• Post Nasal drip, sinuses and other nose and throat conditions. Bad breath can occasionally stem from small stones that form in the tonsils and are covered with bacteria that produce odor. Infections or chronic inflammation in the nose, sinuses or throat, which can contribute to postnasal drip, also can cause bad breath.

• Gastrointstinel. Diseases, and conditions such as metabolic disorders, can cause a distinctive breath odor as a result of chemicals they produce. Chronic reflux of stomach acids (gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD) can be associated with bad breath. Bad breath in young children can be caused by a foreign body, such as a piece of food, lodged in a nostril.

Oral ProbioticsWhat are Oral Probiotics and do they get rid of bad breath?

Did you know that your mouth is full of bacteria? If you are prone to having bad breath and even poor dental health your mouth probably contains higher levels of some of the less desirable bacteria like Streptococcus mutans or Porphyromonas gingivalis. Volatile Sulphur Compounds (VSCs) or waste from the millions of bacteria that inhabit your mouth are often the cause of bad breath. Indeed, for those of you who routinely brush your teeth and practice proper dental care yet still suffer from halitosis, this may be caused by an overgrowth of bacteria that produce smelly compounds in your mouth. While

Study B

probiotics are traditionally known for enhancing gut flora and promoting a healthy digestive tract, new research supports the novel idea that probiotics may also promote a healthier oral cavity and reduce the amount of these smelly bacteria in your mouth. Probiotics are beneficial bacteria and they may just be the key to getting rid of bad breath.

The Benefits of Oral Probiotics

Oral probiotics (sometimes called oralbiotics) promote a healthy and fresh smelling mouth in numerous ways. Here are just some of the benefits:

1. Inhibit plaque formation2. Reduces bleeding and maintains gum line3. Lowers and prevents inflammation4. Inhibit growth of harmful bacteria that cause bad breath and tooth5. Create more favorable conditions for a healthier environment in your

mouth6. Immune support (resulting in reductions of throat and sinus infections)7. Freshens breath8. Whitens teeth

The Research

A study conducted by Burton et al, found that people who did not have bad breath often had the bacteria Streptococcus salivarius in their mouths. This favorable bacterium inhibits the amount of bad breath causing bacteria. The patients in the study who were previously diagnosed with halitosis (bad breath) were able to reduce the levels of VSCs in their mouths by using daily gum or lozenges that contained S. salivarius K12. Researchers found that chewing gum containing probiotics significantly reduced levels of halitosis after a 14 day period (Keller et al).

An abundant amount of smelly bacteria are found under the gum line of gingivitis sufferers, in periodontal pockets, and on the tonsils. If you suffer from bad breath causing ailments such as gingivitis, periodontal disease, or tonsil stones many studies support probiotics effectiveness at reducing bad breath caused by these conditions by repopulating your mouth with good bacteria.

How Oral Probiotics Work

As we previously mentioned, bad breath is often caused by an imbalance of bacteria in the oral cavity where bad bacteria produce VSCs. Lactobacillus Salivarius produce bacteriocins or proteins that reduce these VSC producing

bacteria. Probiotics reduce the amount of those odor causing bacteria by competing with them for nutrients, producing anti-microbial compounds and changing the pH or acidity levels in the mouth to more alkaline, creating a healthier environment in the mouth and inhibiting the growth of bacteria that cause plaque.

The Best Way to Take Oral Probiotics

Probiotics appear in many different types of products from tablets to chewing gum. There are many probiotic rich foods like yogurt, cheese, miso, tempeh, and fermented dairy products. Not all foods contain the correct strain of probiotic that are best at colonizing the oral cavity, so it’s ideal to look for oral probiotics designed specifically to improve your dental health. It is best to follow manufacturer instructions to reap the most benefits from that specific product.

Obtaining probiotics through a dissolving tablet, assures that the probiotic will have more contact with tissue surfaces in the mouth giving the good bacteria more chances to begin colonizing areas afflicted with stinky bacteria.

How Long Before You Will Notice Results

You should notice results after seven days, however some manufacturers maintain that there is an acclimation period of ten days. There isn’t a lot of research on how long the benefits of probiotics will last or how often they should be used.

Sources• ChatterjeeA,BhattacharyaH,andKandwalA.Probioticsinperiodontalhealthanddisease.JIndian

SocPeriodontol.2011Jan-Mar;15(1):23-28.• WescombeP,Hale J,HengN,Tagg J .DevelopingOralProbioticsFromStreptococcus salivarius.

FutureMicrobiol.2012;7(12):1355-1371.• BurtonJP,ChilcottCN,TaggJ.Therationaleandpotentialforthereductionoforalmalodourusing

StreptococcussalivariusK12onoralmalodourparameters.JApplMicrobiol.2006;100:754-64.• KellerMK,BardowA,JensdottirT,LykkeaaJ,TwetmanS.Effectofchewinggumscontainingthe

probiotic bacterium Lactobacillus reuteri on oral malodour. Acta Odontologica Scandinavica, May 2012, Vol. 70, No. 3 : Pages 246-250

www.breathMD.com

Why do I have bad breath?Gut Bacteria

Breath that smells less than fresh is a common symptom of dysbiosis – an imbalance between the good and bad bacteria in your gut, as well as yeast or candida in the gut.

In Chinese medicine the tongue is an important diagnostic tool that can tell you a lot about your digestive health. A thickly coated tongue is a sign of weak or badly functioning digestion.

Toxic Overload

Bad breath can also be a sign of toxic overload and a good indicator to start cleaning up your diet and avoid chemicals in food and cosmetics. Toxins are a burden on our organs of detoxification including the liver, GI tract and skin. When these get overworked they might not be able to dispose of the toxins properly. Bad breath is one of the common signs and symptoms of toxic overload.

Dry Mouth

Stress and dehydration can also be a factor in bad breath. A side-effect from stress can be dry mouth! In a dry mouth, dead cells tend to stick to the tongue and the insides of the mouth and bacteria feeds on these dead cells producing a bad odor in the process. This is also why many of us experience bad breath in the morning when our mouth has been dry and inactive all night.

Probiotics and Fermented Foods

Treating the underlying cause and balancing the gut flora will take a little time, so in addition to cleaning out your gut and taking probiotics, here are some natural remedies you can try to help relieve the symptoms.

Take a high dose of probiotics to help your body better digest foods, repopulate the gut with a healthy flora and fight off yeast and other troublemakers. Also, include fermented foods like sauerkraut, kim chi and kefir to your diet which all contains lots of delicious and healthy good bacteria.

Study C

Probiotics Benefit Oral HealthThese days, probiotics are not just for intestinal health.

Probiotics, or beneficial bacteria that work synergistically with the body, are used to prevent heartburn, treat diverticulitis, topically to address acne, and even in the mouth to treat bad breath.

Dr. Harold Katz, founder of The California Breath Clinics and the author of The Bad Breath Bible, notes that, “Probiotics are able to reduce halitosis by muscling out harmful (and halitosis-producing) bacteria with strains that will not produce oral odors.” (1)

Dr. Katz refers to a Swedish study when he explains that only a small number of people—as few as 10 to 20%—actually have active amounts of beneficial mouth bacteria.

In2011,theIndianJournalofDentalResearchobservedthatperiodontaldisease management is moving away from the antibiotic model, placing more attention on the use of probiotics and prebiotics. (2)

Chronic bad breath is quite common and can even be associated with a more serious disease, in rare cases. Chinese medicine tells us that bad breath indicates heat in the body in the Stomach acupuncture meridian. This fire normally comes from an excessive lifestyle with too much alcohol, spicy foods, medications, or stress.

Probiotics can benefit your intestinal health and can even be used to treat bad breath in the mouth. Beneficial bacteria found in cultured vegetables will support digestion and make breath sweeter.

REFERENCES:

1. Katz,Harold.BadBreath?HowProbioticsCanHelp.HuffpostHealthyLiving.Jun152011. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-harold-katz/bad-breath-probiotics_b_857506.html

2. RRKoduganti,etal.Probioticsandprebioticsinperiodontaltherapy.IndianJDentRes2011;22:324-30

Study D

Banishing Bad Breath with Probiotics When you chew lozenges that contain lactobacillus salivarius , these

beneficial bacteria colonize the mouth, crowding out and inhibiting the growth of odor-producing bacteria. As an added bonus, probiotic lozenges also help stave off ear, nose, and throat infections.

“For several years, I had postnasal drip accompanied by a bad taste in my mouth and breath problems, despite brushing my teeth and using mouthwash. I spent thousands of dollars in an attempt to find a solution, but the problem persisted. After the first week of using Streptococcus salivarius, I now have clear fresh breath and not a trace of sinus problems.” — Anonymous

13 Amazing Health Benefits of Lactobacillus Salivarius

L. salivarius is great for your fresh breath plus your dental and overall health, relieves allergies and asthma, and may lower cholesterol.

* 1) L. salivarius is Antibacterial

* 2) L. salivarius is Beneficial for Dental Health

* 3) L. salivarius May Combat H. pylori

* 4) L. salivarius May Relieve GI Inflammation

* 5) L. salivarius is Beneficial in Obesity

* 6) L. salivarius May be Beneficial in Diabetes

* 7) L. salivarius May Stimulates Liver Function

* 8) L. salivarius Enhances the Immune Response

* 9) L. salivarius Combats Dermatitis

* 10) L. salivarius Alleviates Asthma

* 11) L. salivarius Combats Cancer

* 12) L. salivarius May Relieve Breast Infection in Pregnancy

* 13) L. salivarius May Relieve Bad Breath (halitosis)

Study E

Available in your health food store or online