Celebrity diets may lead to halitosis

Many celebrities are no stranger to interesting diets. They are often at the forefront, championing a new strategy for shedding unwanted pounds. While the health effects of these fad diets may be debated by nutritional experts, it may be presumed that many of these diets can lead to bad breath.

Famous couple Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore recently announced via their Twitter feeds that they would be going on the Master Cleanse diet together, according to HollywoodNews.com. The plan calls for them to subsist on a drink consisting of lemon, cayenne pepper and maple syrup.

The diet may be difficult to follow. Kutcher tweeted: "Nine hrs into the master cleanse. I want a steak, a beer and a blow-pop. Hmmm this is gonna be rough."

The health benefits of this plan may be up for debate. However it is difficult to imagine that anyone who follows a diet rich in pepper and sugar can avoid bad breath.

A new book written by Matthew and Mark Jacob - titled What the Great Ate: A Curious History of Food and Fame - catalogues many of these wacky strategies for losing weight, as well as some of the just plain odd foods that famous individuals enjoyed throughout the ages.

While the book may make for an interesting read, it also makes you wonder how these celebrities overcame bad breath, given some of their food choices. For example, the book discusses the eating habits of Angelina Jolie, who famously chowed down on cockroaches on a trip to Cambodia, according to the Vancouver Sun.

The little critters may be packed with protein, but they are also less than hygienic. Despite being cooked, it is easy to imagine that cockroaches leave behind bad breath in those who dare to eat them.

The book goes back in history to catalogue famous food missteps. Many of these may have resulted in bad breath. Alexander the Great banned his troops from chewing mint leaves due to fears that they would become too sexually excited for combat, according to the news source.

While the military merits of this move can be debated, one thing is for sure: men in Alexander the Great's army were much more likely to experience bad breath after having their mint taken away.

If you are considering jumping on one of these celebrity diet bandwagons, you may want to take steps to guard against bad breath. TheraBreath offers a line of products that are specially designed to eliminate the source of bad breath, regardless of the interesting food in which you choose to indulge.