More than 37 percent of the U.S. population is dieting at any given time. Some of the most popular diet programs in existence today rely on restricting or nearly eliminating the amount of carbohydrates in your diet. Unfortu-nately, the high-protein, low-carb diet craze has brought with it a side effect-really bad breath, or as it is known in the scientific community, low-carb oral malodor, or LCOM.
"This potentially embarrassing condition may be experienced sporadically or chronically and at different degrees depending on how strictly the diet is followed, previous disposition for the condition and oral hygiene," explained Sushma Nachnani, Ph.D. of the University Health Resources Group, Inc. "High-protein diets break down into this bouquet of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, which are then expelled through the breath, which produces an offensive odor."
The good news is that recent studies have shown that LCOM can be effectively treated through a good oral health routine that includes the active antimicrobial components found in products such as BreathRx®, which until recently was only available through your dentist. The BreathRx® fresh breath system includes the elements of brushing your teeth, cleaning your tongue with a tongue scraper and then rinsing with a nonalcoholic, sugar-free mouth rinse. In clinical studies conducted by Dr. Nachnani, subjects who followed the treatment regimen of brushing, scraping and rinsing using the BreathRx products realized improvements in a relatively short time, with the subjects reporting significantly fresher breath.