Can soaking raw gypsum in water cure bad breath?
Hello doctor, I have been suffering from bad breath for a long time, and have tried many methods with little effect. Recently, a friend told me that drinking water infused with raw gypsum can treat bad breath, and that raw gypsum has properties of clearing heat and relieving fire, which could be beneficial for halitosis. However, I'm not sure whether this claim is reliable, since it involves ingesting it. Therefore, I would like to ask you, can drinking water infused with raw gypsum really treat bad breath?
Doctor's answer (1)
In general, soaking raw gypsum in water usually cannot directly treat bad breath.
Raw gypsum is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine with a cold nature, possessing effects of clearing heat, relieving fire, alleviating irritability, and quenching thirst. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, some cases of bad breath are caused by excessive stomach heat or upward inflammation of gastric fire. Soaking raw gypsum in water might help alleviate such bad breath by reducing stomach fire. However, bad breath has multiple potential causes, including poor oral hygiene, dental caries, periodontitis, and other oral diseases, as well as gastrointestinal conditions like gastritis and gastric ulcers, and even respiratory diseases. If the bad breath is not caused by excessive stomach fire, soaking raw gypsum in water may have little or no effect.
It is not recommended to self-treat bad breath by soaking raw gypsum in water. When bad breath occurs, one should first visit a hospital for a comprehensive examination to determine the underlying cause. If oral diseases are responsible, timely dental treatment such as scaling or filling may be necessary. If the cause is related to gastrointestinal disease, appropriate medical treatment should be followed under a doctor's guidance.
In daily life, maintaining good oral hygiene habits is important: brushing teeth properly in the morning and evening, rinsing the mouth after meals, avoiding spicy and greasy foods in the diet, and consuming more vegetables and fruits can help improve bad breath.
