One of the biggest reasons why your dentist tells you to floss is because there is a lot of trapped food and bacteria under your gum line. Even if you floss often, you may still experience halitosis. Cosmetic dentistry can actually help with the halitosis problem. Here is how that works.

Deep Gum Cleaning

A really deep gum cleaning that goes beneath the visible surfaces of your gums can remove a lot of the bacteria that is still trapped. This is often used in conjunction with another cosmetic procedure to thin and cut down thick gum tissue. If you also have thick gum tissue and you intend to treat this problem after a deep gum cleaning, then you will be able to address part of the halitosis issue you currently experience.

Thinning Gum Tissue with a Laser

Gum tissue can thicken due to medications, hereditary factors, hormones, and even inflammation that refuses to subside. This last reason is the biggest reason why dentists perform a deep gum cleaning prior to thinning the gum tissue with a laser. Removing the trapped bacteria in the heavily inflamed gums ensures that the effects of the gum thinning will be successful and produce the desired effects.  The heated laser used to remove the thinnest top layers of gum tissue also burns up any surface bacteria on your gums, ensuring that almost all of the bacteria that could cause bad breath are destroyed.

Teeth Whitening with Peroxide

If you opt for the above cosmetic procedures and include a teeth whitening with dental peroxide, there is a very little chance that the bacteria that was once hidden in your gums will survive. Dental peroxide destroys some bacteria on contact, as well as acting as a bacterial growth inhibitor. It is why it is a leading ingredient in many antiseptic and tooth-whitening mouthwashes. (It is not as strong as the dental peroxide dentists use to whiten teeth in their offices, but it is still quite effective.) 

Antibiotics Prescribed to Combat Infection after All of the Procedures Are Complete

If your dentist has any concern that one or more of these cosmetic dental procedures may lead to an infection and/or you are susceptible to oral infections, your dentist may prescribe antibiotics after the procedures are complete. When taken in conjunction with all of the above cosmetic procedures, all of the bacteria in your gums that could have caused halitosis are now destroyed. Continued good oral hygiene practices from here on out ensures that halitosis (due to germs and bacteria under the gums) will not return.