My son just had his 12 month check up and I asked his pediatrician about his funky breath. She said she couldn't find a real reason to be concerned. She's heard of it before and says that it should pass on it's own. Well, we brush his teeth and give him water after meals and nothing is helping. Brushing his teeth works right afterwards, but by morning... pheeeew! We have to brush again, and we try our best to get his tongue too. I just want to know if any other moms has gone through this with their one year olds and if infact it did go away and what you did to help maintain the odor or get rid of it.
Thank you for all of your help and suggestions. I work in a dental clinic lol but we don't deal with pediatric dentistry. My son wasn't sick or congested and hasn't used a pacifier since he was 4 1/2 months old. We just kept up with our routine and his funky breath did infact go away on its own. I am left to believe that it had much to do with the change in his diet. For awhile it was pretty bad, but is now back to nuetral... thank hevans! He has starting teething on his 8th tooth, but the breath was bad way before the teething began. Again thank you a lot... happy to hear my child is not the only one this young with some funky breath lol
Babies get morning breath and food breath just like we do. More so if they're teething or using pacifiers a lot, because of extra drool. Just keep up with the teeth brushing and don't sweat it.
Does he breath through his mouth or his nose when he sleeps? Mouth breathers (if stuffy - allergy season is upon us or colds) can cause more bacteria to build up in their mouths while sleeping and this can cause the bad or funky breath.
My daughter started having issues when her tonsils started growing and not going back down after colds. She started breathing through her mouth and her breath started getting funky. In the beginning brushing helped because it was just the mouth breathing that was causing the problem. As her tonsils got bigger, adnoids, too, then her breath was always bad regardless of brushing.
Sometimes you might see a little white "fuzz" on the tongue toward the back, middle area and this is the bacteria. Brush the tongue well if you can.
My daughter got her tonsils out and voila, no more bad breath.
I agree with Kate and Missy...this was something we noticed right after my kids started eating more "regular" food. My older two got the "funky" breath around that age, and my 18 month old has it after a nap, or when she wakes up in the morning. All three of our kids have healthy diets (with little to no junk food), are very "regular" when it comes to using the potty and have their teeth brushed often. I'm more inclined to attribute your little one's breath to diet change, unless he is showing other signs that something more is going on.
One thing that can cause bad breath in kids is if they have a runny nose (it is actually caused by the stuff running down the back of their throat) So if that is the case - could be caused by a cold or teething - it should be better when that passes.
Halitosis can come from the stomach - gases rise then we smell them as "bad breath" What kinds of foods is your child eating? - try to notice the connections between what is being eating and when the bad breath happens - eating any kind of fried and processed foods and not getting enough liquids can definitely add to this as the diet and the digestion system needs enzymes to digest properly...enzymes come from eating fresh foods whole and not processed...so if it persists try throwing in more fresh fruits and veggies as well as maybe trying some enzyme supplements..Zand makes a great one that works on fats, carbs, fibers, etc...and it sure help my children after they have eaten garlic laden meals! I wish you well!
There could be a number of reasons. The first I would ask myself if he is having a bowel movement everyday and is it normal. What are you feeding him that may be causing the problem. This is not really normal for an infant so I would try to find the cause. If you are interested in seeing a naturopathic doctor I have a couple in mind depending on where you are located or find a good on in your area. Naturopath's are more in finding the cause of something than just saying it will pass. I would have him just checked out to make sure it isn't something that might take just a little adjustment of something that is happening.
N.
Health and Wellness Coach
all of my kids would have bad breath when they were getting a cold or had runny noses. Also binkies and drool are a good place for stinkyness.
babies that age really shouldn't have bad breath. If you can smell it first thing in the morning like how you are saying there maybe a bigger issue. Some kids get bad breath when they are or getting sick. He could have an infection. Also when did he start getting teeth? Are there any that look like they could have decay? It sounds like you take good care of his teeth but you never know. I would call a dentist and get him in. They can take a quick look and let you know if there is anything to be worried about.
Did you ask ur dentist?
I never experienced that but I think I would first ask the pediatrician (which u did), dentist, change tooth paste (the ones for kids are not that good, read the fine lines) and would test the pH in his mouth (might be too acidic -> bacterias favorite environment).
Good luck. Let us posted.
My daughter had stinky breath for a little while too, but about 3-4 weeks after we started brushing her teeth consistently it went away. That was 9 months ago and her breath is normally neutral now. We just make sure we brush: teeth, gums, insides of cheeks, inside of lips and roof of her mouth. Basically, if we would touch it if we stuck our finger in her mouth, we brush it.
You might check if it's okay to use flouride free toothpast with him yet. We use Toms of Maine and that's what our dentist recommended.
Think of baby's breath - like the flowers - does not smell good. Other than that, if it persists as he grows....think does he have any stomach issues...bad breath believe it or not comes from the stomach & intestines & is usually a sign of digestive problems (bowel movements, reflux, just to name a couple). When my kids' sinuses acted up, they also seemed to have a foul odor to their mouth. Right now, I would think of it as the "baby's breath", but see if it continues over the next few months.
Take your child to a Naturpathic doctor. The breath has little to do with the teeth and more to do with the ph balance of his body, so it is a serious warning sign. A naturpath will know what to do, this is more serious than bad breath.
Another thought is, does he use a binky at night? You might try smelling that in the morning and seeing if it's icky too. Wash it really well before each time you use it and see if that makes any difference. Good luck!
I think once they are eating food and have teeth then yes they do suffer the same as anyone else with the morning breath. They are human after all and we all have to brush our teeth at night and in the morning.
Does he, or has he in the past, had spit up issues or seemed to have tummy aches? When my oldest son was a baby, ( about 4 months old) he had bad breath, and our pediatrcian said it was not normal for little children to have bad breath, especially before they start eating " real: food. Unless your son eats a considerable amount of spicy, ethnic foods, he should not have bad breath.
Our son had acid reflux, and after a couple weeks on his medicine, his breath was markedly different. I would definately get a second opinion.
Good luck !
You didn't say if he's been sick lately. A one year old shouldn't have terrible breath unless they have a post-nasal drip going on, or a throat infection like strep or something.
My daughter had a bad stretch of bad breath after a cold where she was still experiencing the post-nasal drip for a couple weeks. That had her breath reeking for a while.
Just keep an eye on it.
