Never Scraped Your Tongue? Here's Why You Should.

August 6th is National Fresh Breath Day, and cosmetic dentist Tom Connelly, DDS, stopped by the Daily Shot studios to clear up some bad breath rumors and give his best tips for staying fresh.

While people are quick to blame certain foods for bad breath, Dr. Tom says it may have more to do with stress and anxiety. “Those stress hormones are increased, your salivary production is decreased and bacteria thrive,” he says. “Those bacteria produce those smelly gases and sulfur compounds. That’s bad breath.”

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But if you’ve ever tried to check your breath by cupping a hand over your mouth, forget it. You can’t smell your own breath. “Your brain filters it out,” Dr. Tom says. “It’s not information you need to know.”

So what’s the one thing people can do to improve their breath? Tongue scraping. “I can’t tell you how many of my patients have never cleaned their tongue” likening the lack of cleaning to someone who doesn’t clean a shag rug. Taste buds “trap dead skin cells and food debris, and it’s actually rotting on their tongue.”

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To find out what Ali thinks about tongue scraping, and learn about Dr. Tom’s products to beat bad breath, check out today’s Daily Shot.