You walk up to your colleague to talk to him about an important issue at work. As soon as he starts talking, you have to turn your head away due to the stench coming from his mouth.

Bad breath is an embarrassing problem not just for the person suffering from it but also for the one who has to bear it. Often people find it difficult to bring it up to the person's notice. So, if someone complained to you about your breath, you probably have bad breath.

Bad breath can create problems not just at the office level, but also at a personal level. Most men and women agree that bad breath is the biggest turn off in a relationship. It can be quite damaging to self-esteem especially to children who might be made fun of. A person can be made fun of at work, not just behind his back but also a few casual remarks in front which can be quite hurting. A person might become conscious about his bad breath when speaking to others not enabling him to be at ease.

It is estimated that 25% of the entire population suffers from some degree of chronic bad breath. One third of the people consulting with their dentist voice bad breath issues.

So, how to determine if you have bad breath?

There are quite a few ways to determine if you have bad breath apart from trying to smell your own breath:

1. Take a piece of clean cloth and rub it on your teeth. Wait for a few seconds and smell it.

2. Lick and the back of your hand and smell it after it dries.

3. Try passing dental floss between your back teeth and smell it.

So, now that you know you have a chronic breath problem, don't expect to get rid of it by popping some chewing gums or using a mouth wash. These will only mask your bad breath but not treat it.

The first step in treating bad breath is to identify its cause. There are plenty of causes of bad breath and a majority of the causes are local in origin. Note that there are a few extra oral sources of bad breath too such as respiratory tract and sinus infections. Other causes might be associated with lifestyle like smoking (smokers breath) and severe dieting which causes fruity odor due to Ketoacidosis. The most common cause tends to be poor oral hygiene. Poor oral hygiene lets bacteria breed in the mouth uninhibited and they produce foul smell by acting on organic substances in the mouth.

An important aspect that needs to be mentioned here is Halitophobia or delusional Halitosis. Quite a few people seem to be so concerned with their breath that they imagine they are suffering from bad breath.

They are not satisfied even after trying gums and mouthwashes and end up at the dentist addressing an issue which does not exist.

Bad breath isn't a hard problem to take care of. It can be well controlled by proper oral hygiene.

In case of persistent bad breath due to no apparent reason, it's always best to consult your dentist.