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Dental and Oral Health (Children)

Milk breath

02/19/2008

Question:

My son is fifteen he does drink milk not every day. He brushes his teeth daily but his breath always smells like milk even right after he brushes. He has no none allergys. can something be wrong?

Answer:

Thanks for the question. There are several possibilities for your son's 'milk breath'. In cases where the mouth is the origin, there is often tartar and plaque below the gums that contributes to gingivitis /periodontitis. In many cases. bad breath may also originate from involutions in the tonsils (cryptic tonsilitis), food intolerances (lactose intolerance), or lack of tongue hygiene. In some cases, the inability of a person to 'break down' certain foods can lead to malodor as well.

I would recommend an exam by a dentist and your son's primary care physician to try to find the problem. Hope this helps.

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Response by:

Sarath Thikkurissy, DDS, MS Sarath Thikkurissy, DDS, MS
Associate Professor of Pediatric Dentistry
College of Dentistry
The Ohio State University