Animals can't help their bad breath, but you can

Having bad breath isn't a situation limited to humans, as almost any dog or cat owner will tell you. halitosis doesn't originate in human-specific foods - except for pungent ones like garlic and onions - so much as it does in the bacteria found in mammalian mouths.

The foods we eat are, for these microbes, little more than...well, food. Of course, some meals can kick oral odor into overdrive - Mexican, Italian, Chinese and Indian platters all have the varied ability to engender bad breath. But more to the point is that in all of us, people and pets alike, billions of bacteria are thriving.

Some of these critters are quite helpful. Numerous studies have shown that certain strains of microorganisms assist with digestion in the gastrointestinal tract. Similarly, microbes found in oral care probiotics products, like the M-18 Probiotics Kit, gradually crowd out the odor-causing varieties.

Still, plenty of offensive microorganisms may be living in your mouth. Or your pet's - a columnist for the UK Daily Mail recently lamented having to share an automobile with a mouth-breathing canine for six hours.

Another article, this one appearing in the Las Cruces Sun-News, noted that scented oral care products do not appear to be readily available for furry friends or farm animals.

Why do so few anti-halitosis products exist for livestock and other denizens of the farm. The author puts it succintly:

"Mother nature depends on smells to keep things straight. It's why you have to smear petroleum jelly on a cow's muzzle to graft a calf. Or drape a twin or triplet in the skinned hide of a dead lamb to get another ewe to accept it," the news source stated.

Essentially, animals need to smell like animals in order to differentiate one another, a process that may be bypassed, though only temporarily, by modifying what a cow, horse or sheep can smell.

Humans are different. For whatever reason, we largely do not need to have bad breath. It serves virtually no constructive purpose, either socially, culturally or biologically. In fact, halitosis tends to drive away potential dates and to alienate you from friends.

This is one reason why using specialty breath fresheners is so important. Brushing, flossing, using a tongue scraper and avoiding smelly foods can keep your exhalations smelling excellent. Even if your pets or livestock could benefit from a specialty breath freshening product, odds are that you could, too.