Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey
Speaker 1: brain Stuff. Lauren voc Obam here with a classic episode
Speaker 1: from our former host, Christian Sager. This one pertains to
Speaker 1: one of the most annoyingly persistent aspects of the human condition,
Speaker 1: morning breath. Hey, they're brain stuffers. Have you ever woken
Speaker 1: up seen someone else and have them say, hey, Christian,
Speaker 1: your breath smells like a hot bathroom. You might respond
Speaker 1: by saying, wow, that was totally uncalled for. Everyone's got
Speaker 1: bad breath first thing in the morning. But then this
Speaker 1: hypothetical person who's calling you by my name for some
Speaker 1: reason says, everyone, Okay, prove its smart guy, why do
Speaker 1: we get morning breath? Well, if you find yourself in
Speaker 1: this situation, here's how I recommend that you proceed. You
Speaker 1: can start by telling them that bad breath in general
Speaker 1: is caused by all kinds of things. Obviously, what you ingest,
Speaker 1: like garlic, onions or alcohol can contribute. Their strong odors
Speaker 1: go through your blood stream and are exhaled by your lungs.
Speaker 1: And some bad breath is caused by systemic infections or
Speaker 1: something gross in your lungs or gastro intestinal tract. Maybe
Speaker 1: it's a dental problem like gum disease or trapped food
Speaker 1: particles under a broken filling. Even sinus infections and diabetes
Speaker 1: can give you bad breath, but the most likely culprit
Speaker 1: is bacteria. There are millions of bacteria just in your mouth,
Speaker 1: and these little living beings excrete teensy tiny bits of
Speaker 1: waste with a pungent odor. This is what usually makes
Speaker 1: your breath smell bad, especially in the morning. The reason
Speaker 1: why it's worst in the morning is dry mouth. When
Speaker 1: your mouth is wet, saliva washes away and controls bacteria
Speaker 1: with oxygen. But when it's dry, like when you first
Speaker 1: wake up, these bacteria just hang out like disgusting couch potatoes.
Speaker 1: They devour compounds, pro teens, amino acids, and any leftover
Speaker 1: food in your mouth. The wastes they excrete are called
Speaker 1: volatile sulfur compounds v s c S for short, and
Speaker 1: they're comprised of hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptain, and dime methyl sulfide.
Speaker 1: All of these stink like an old sock soaked in
Speaker 1: the juice of rotten meat. So when you're asleep, you're
Speaker 1: producing less saliva to control these nasty bacteria. Smells there's
Speaker 1: not much we can do about it happening, but brushing
Speaker 1: your teeth, flossng, and you know, drinking water before bed
Speaker 1: will help reduce the amount of compounds of the bacteria
Speaker 1: can feast on. Brushing again first thing in the morning
Speaker 1: wouldn't hurt either. So I guess what I'm saying here
Speaker 1: is brush your teeth. Today's episode was written by Christian
Speaker 1: and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff is production of
Speaker 1: iHeart Radios How Stuff Works. For more on this and
Speaker 1: lots of other topics, visit our home planet has stuff
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