Let’s say that you take a moment to smell your breath and it smells absolutely terrible. You may wonder why that is. It might be because there is something wrong, or because you had something a bit more pungent in your mouth. Sometimes, it’s because you haven’t brushed your teeth yet. It may as well be because it’s a problem internally. If your breath smells like ammonia, it’s actually a kidney problem, and here, we’ll go over what this might mean for you.
Your Kidneys
The kidneys are basically little parts about the size of a human fist, and they’re on both sides of your spine, sitting right underneath where the rib cage is.
They’re super important for you, because they filter your body, getting rid of waste, and also get rid of any fluids that are in excess through the process of urination. They also control the red blood cells within the body, release hormones that control your blood pressure, and also manage the vitamin D within the body, so they do help with producing healthy bones and preventing fractures.
Your kidneys remove a product called urea, but the problem is, whenever your kidneys don’t get rid of enough of it, it creates an ammonia smell, which is why those who have kidney problems struggle with bad breath that’s like chemicals.
Your body also struggles from absorbing the calcium it needs properly due to kidney disease, which causes bone loss, and it impacts the jaw and other bones within the body.
The Cause and treatments
If you have ammonia bad breath, there are other reasons for this, and usually, it’s due to kidney disease.
The causes of kidney disease usually include the following:
- Lupus and other autoimmune conditions
- High blood pressure
- Kidney injuries
- Diabetes
- Certain medications
The only way for you to get rid of ammonia breath, is to look for what’s underlying, and you should speak to a doctor to figure out what you can do.
You can also mask this as you get treated, but keep in mind the ammonia breath won’t go away until you do something about it.
You can mask bad breath the following ways though:
- Brushing your teeth and carrying travel toothbrushes and pasts wherever you go
- Drink a lot of water to ensure hydration
- Avoid onions and garlic, or other foods that are pungent
- Cleaning the tongue with a tongue scraper or a toothbrush that’s soft-bristled
- Stop using tobacco products or smoking
- Chewing gum that’s sugar-free
If you want to maintain the oral health that you want to have you’ve got to make sure that you keep in mind this also involves ensuring that you pay attention to when things do go wrong. When you see your doctor for checkups twice yearly, ask them about this, and if you’re at risk for this.
If you notice this at the dentist, talk to them to find out how to create the ideal care routine, and this includes brushing twice every single day, flossing to get rid of the particles, and also making sure that you use a good mouth rinse.
For a lot of people, bad breath is caused by eating the wrong foods, but it also results in other problems. Talk to a doctor to figure out what the best thing to do if you have bad breath is, and the ideal treatment for this, especially if you have it, and what you can do to eliminate this from your mouth as well.
Oscar Dental Concepts 