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For many of us, the moment we first wake up in the morning isn’t pretty -from messy bed head to drool on our chin and a gross taste in our mouth.
But why is it that we get morning breath even though we haven’t eaten anything in hours and brushed our teeth before bed?
According to dentist, Dr. Sofina Ahmed, there are several reasons why and it turns out your saliva, how well you slept and your sinuses could all be playing a big part.
If you’ve been struggling with weird tastes in your mouth, here’s everything you need to know about what’s causing it, as well as some top tips to smell fresh as a daisy in the morning…
Why do we get morning breath?
When we sleep, our production of saliva lessens and only continues to decrease if you sleep with your mouth open or breathe through your mouth.
This lack of saliva means that your mouth doesn’t clean itself as it should, allowing bacteria that has an odour to thrive, especially around your tongue.
‘This paves the way to not only morning breath but also a bitter taste,’ Dr. Ahmed, from Viva Dental, says.
Why do I taste salt or blood when I wake up?
A salty or ‘bloody’ taste in your mouth first thing in the morning is linked to your nose and could be a sign that something is wrong with your sinuses.
You could have an infection, an allergy or a condition like rhinitis which can trigger pot-nasal drip – this is where mucus drips down the back of your throat during sleep.
‘This mucus can carry bacteria, inflammation byproducts, even tiny traces of blood from irritated tissues. This often leads to the lingering salty and metallic taste,’ Dr. Ahmed explains.
What does a sour or metallic taste mean?
Throughout the night your saliva becomes acidic as bacteria in your mouth breaks down any leftover sugars or food debris. This acidity can impact your taste buds, tooth enamel, and the overall ‘freshness’ of your mouth.
Laryngopharyngeal reflux, also known as silent reflux, can also play an ‘instrumental role’ in this causing an odd taste in your mouth. This is a condition where stomach acid and enzymes travel back into the throat and voice box, but without causing the typical heartburn or indigestion of acid reflux.
‘Even without usual symptoms, stomach acid can sneak up into your throat and mouth at night, coating the tongue and leaving a sour or metallic taste that lingers into the next morning,’ Dr. Ahmed warns.
Your sleep hygiene could be impacting your taste buds
If you aren’t suffering with any of the conditions above, you might want to consider how well you’ve been sleeping lately, as Dr. Ahmed reveals that ‘poor sleep hygiene can distort how you perceive flavour’.
She shares: ‘If you find that you wake with a dull taste in your mouth, snore, gasp when you sleep or feel like your sleep isn’t restorative, it may signal that your sleep is affecting your taste as well as your energy.’
Those with a sleep apnoea have it the worst though, as they can lose sensitivity to foods that are sweet, salty, sour and bitter, according to the dentist.
How to avoid morning breath
Dr. Ahmed claims there are several thing you can try to make ‘a significant difference’ to how fresh you feel in the morning. Her first top tip is to stay hydrated by drinking a glass of water before bed and having one on your bedside table.
‘A dry mouth increases a bad taste by letting bacteria proliferate. Ensure that you keep hydrated throughout the day,’ she advises.
Next stimulate saliva in the evening by chewing sugar-free gum. This encourages saliva production and helps flush out debris.
She also recommends adding a tongue scraper into your nightly routine when getting ready for bed.
‘Brushing the tongue helps remove tongue coating (dead cells, debris, bacteria) shown to correlate strongly with bad morning taste,’ Dr. Ahmed adds.
And finally, don’t forget to floss and use antibacterial or neutral pH mouthwash to clean the inside of the cheeks and under the tongue.
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