Cure for “Dieter's Breath”
Q: For about three weeks I've been following a high-protein, low-carb diet. The good news: I've lost 10 pounds! The bad news: My breath is atrocious! What's going on, and how can I freshen up?
Ann Louise: High-protein diets increase the rate of ketosis, a metabolic process that burns fat for energy-and creates bad breath as a by-product. To the rescue: a minty sugar-free gum, like Carefree Koolerz, that's flavored with all-natural sweetener xylitol. Xylitol contains 70 percent fewer calories than sugar. And since odor-causing oral bacteria thrive on sugar, cutting back also helps keep breath fresh. What's more, chewing gum stimulates the production of oxygen-rich saliva, another enemy of oral bacteria, which survive best in an oxygen-free environment. And gum chewing even helps burn calories-11 per hour, reports one New England Journal of Medicine study.
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Visionary, health guru, diet/detox expert, and natural foods icon Ann Louise Gittleman is the award-winning author of 30 books on health and healing including the New York Times bestsellers The Fat Flush Plan and Before The Change. Her most recent release is The Gut Flush Plan.
For the past two decades she has been considered one of the foremost nutritionist in the United States.
A regular contributor to national television and radio, visit her at www.annlouise.com. You can also follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
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Graham
If you are drinking protein shakes or meal replacement shakes be sure to rinse out your mouth very well after drinking the shake or any meal for that matter. The process of breaking down the protein causes the bacteria to give of sulfur compounds.
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