Have been casually meeting a girl but her bad breath is really off putting

40 comments

1. “Hey, do you want some gum?”

2. Ask her about it, just not yet. And be kind

3. It could be stress induced or even hormones.
   You can always bring it up in a gentle way, so that she doesn’t feel offended. Bear in mind we can’t really detect our own body odors, so she’s definitely not aware.
   Also, no one os perfect & everyone has a flaw. So, unless we ask her we don’t know what she detects in you.

4. You say she has lovely teeth yet stink mouth. Perhaps she has crowns. They can create a rot smell if you aren’t diligent and you usually don’t end up in crowns if you are the diligent type.

5. Gum disease?

6. Here’s my favourite trick with how to bring up bad breath:
   Ask her: “Hey, do I have bad breath right now?”
   Whatever the answer, they USUALLY respond with “Yes/no. What about me?”
   Oldest trick in the book. Works with anything

7. Please tell her. I have to wonder if previous prospects also failed due to her breath.

8. It might be also caused by digestive issues, which are sometimes very hard to treat. But chances are if she isn’t aware of them and hasn’t tried to fix it, she might be able to. Stress can definitely also contribute. Those should be relatively safe topics to talk about.

9. Sounds like halitosis.

10. She has halitosis. It’s in her stomach and she needs to be told so she can do something about it. You would want to know if the situation was reversed

11. I just saw a video on TikTok of this woman who had had ear trouble and bad breath her entire life. Turned out she had “tonsil stones” in her enlarged tonsils causing all kinds of problems. Maybe you could start a random conversation about childhood health problems and ask her if she had ear problems. Or find that video on TikTok and show her.

12. Hey, OP. This won’t help, but you saying, “She got in my car the other day and I had to crack the window a bit for fresh air” made me laugh. Lol.

    Bad breath would be a no-no for me. I’m super sensitive to smells. Also, I know I’d like someone to tell me if I had bad breath, so I could fix the problem. I think you should tell her in a very gentle way.

13. My best friend had the worst breath just before she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It’s like an acidic smell and completely different from casual “bad breath”. Not sure what her surgery was for but it definitely could be related to a bigger health issue

14. This happened to me a month and some change ago, or 2 months cant remember.. We had been intimate gone on like 3 or 4 dates, but I slowly started to pull away, she kept texting i felt bad so i agrred we couldmeet l, but said….”yeah we can hang, and I’m not trying to be bogus, but you have to do something about your breath, make sure you floss”. She played it off, pretended like it didn’t happen, but come date time, she ended up having an emergency and had to cancel, which I was okay with. I was the last one to send a message, so i kinda felt relieved when she didn’t re engage…maybe I helped some.other guy.not have to deal it. Depends what your goal is with her too though, if you’re just in it for fun, shut up and get drunk (it’s harder to smell for some reason when you’re drunk) and push through it….if you really like her and want to be with her you have to say something. Maybe not as blunt as I was, kid gloves are definitely preferred, but gotta say something my guy

15. Do you care about this girl? If so then a genuine conversation is called for. Not a you stink, but more like “this is going to sound weird but sometimes your breath smells really strong. Like really strong at times. Your teeth are beautiful so it’s not dental, do you have a stomach issue that you’ve ever talked w your doc about? I’m concerned about you.”

16. OP, I know I’m not everyone, however I feel like this is a “food stuck in your teeth” scenario. I’d want someone to tell me if I had bad breath all the time, I’d be so embarrassed to find out some other way far more public.

    Anyways, I’m a nurse for whatever that’s worth, and my first guess for the cause of nasty breath without visible tooth decay would be [tonsil stones](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsil_stones#:~:text=Symptoms%20may%20include%20bad%20breath,tonsillar%20stones%2C%20chronic%20caseous%20tonsillitis).

    I get these little buggers from time to time, and the best fix is to get a cotton swab and start poking at them and spitting them out, then brush and rinse with mouthwash. She may need to repeat this every couple of days/weeks depending on several factors.

17. Oh man…this sounds like stumach ulcers to me. Just a thought before you assume its poor dental hygene and accidently offend her.

18. “Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something personal. I really like you and being this close to you, but has anyone ever told you that you have bad breath?”

    At least this way it’s not accusatory or making it sound like it’s her fault.

    There’s no easy or kinder way to tell her, but you have to be honest. You have to be able to communicate directly and transparently without fear of her taking it the wrong way. If she can’t talk about this with maturity, what else can’t she talk about like an adult?

19. She probably has tonsil stones. If she has gum and her teeth look good it’s either that or gastric reflux. I’m a woman and I suffer from tonsil stones and there’s literally no cure for it, I just manage it by chewing food well to avoid it in the first place and coughing it out (painfully) if they show up.

20. “Hey… listen, I don’t want you to take this wrong way AT ALL because I actually really like you and think you’re super cool and I want to keep seeing you, but I have to say something because I feel that I should just out of respect for you so that you or we can doing something about it… there’s no easy way to say this so I’m just going to say it. Your breath smells really bad… It could be tonsil stones, which can totally be cured. But what worries me is that it could be gastro intestinal and you need to see a doctor about it because more importantly, I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.” (Blah blah blah, etc)

    Basically. Just be straight with people.

    Maybe it’s because I’m old (34m), but also maybe it’s because I’ve been this way since getting in trouble in 6th grade for a fight and sitting in the principals office when being asked what happened and I just owned it outright… just be straight up. No bullshit, No lies or half truths, just tell it to them straight. People respect that. And then something can be done about it and you reassure them that you’re there with her/ support her and all that in your case. Easy peasy dude.

21. Maybe she has tonsillolith

22. It could be that she has a cavity or she has internal problems like maybe she has a stomach ulcer or something

23. Could be several things. My breath smelled terrible when I had gingivitis (teeth looked fine and I brush like crazy but for some reason I just get it really easily), went and got a super deep clean at the dentist and found out I also had tonsil stones which contributed to it. Anyway got those issues cleared up and good to go!

    She may genuinely not know. I’d probably very kindly say something. Like very kindly, but ultimately you’d probably be doing her a favor even if it hurts her feelings a bit.

    I’d rather someone tell me and I can go try and get it fixed and maybe have hurt feelings for a little bit than to lose a love interest (and future ones) and also possibly friends and co workers keeping distance for the sake of not hurting my feelings lol

24. Could be her diet. I had a good friend doing a weird keto diet and her breath was awful. When she stopped the diet, the bad breath stopped too. Bad breath is the worst. Deal killer for me.

25. She could have tonsil stones.

26. Could be abscess in the tooth (very well could be in the molars), the smell is permanent, it doesn’t go away with brushing teeth and sometimes this problem is not seen unless you go to a dentist.

    It’s a sensitive issue, but I think you need to sit down and say it’s a sensitive topic but you care about her and you have noticed that she has bad breath, you can say that you don’t believe it’s a hygiene issue, but rather seems like a medical issue.

    Trust me, it’s better to be upfront and this way you can also see what kind of people you are when you are met with uncomfortable situation.

27. Look her deep in her eyes, wait for her to blush from the uncomfort of her animalistic urges taking control. She’ll turn away bashfully hoping you’ll pull her back in with a soft but firm touch. You will. Both your eyes’ will meet again, and then slowly close in anticipation. She’ll lean in with her mouth slightly open, waiting for the sweet embrace of your lips.

    Drop a tic tac in there. Easy

28. Kindly tell her the truth.

    I like you, I want more, but I find your breath really bad.

29. She could be having tonsil problems, you can get pockets after multiple infections that breed the grossest nuggets, she may have a bad tooth way in the back that you can’t see and she hasn’t been able to get fixed, and she could have any of multiple digestive issues. As long as you handle it with kindness and don’t accuse her of not knowing how to brush her teeth, it’ll work out

30. Start with pushing a new gum and have one too. Say “I feel like I have bad breath, do I?” Hope she reciprocated and then laugh with her kindly? Sensitive topic because she might become self-conscious if you tell her straight up? Is it all the time, every day? You might have to tell her nicely…

31. I once worked with a girl like this. When we had one on one meetings, I would offer her breath mints. She finally got the hint. Supper passive-aggressive I know.

32. There is so much factors that can cause bad breath. Medication, dry mouth, acid reflux, sinus issues

33. As a girl, id really like it if someone told me my breath was pretty bad. Like its in peoples space all day, the last thing i want is to be smelly. Even if it may hurt my feelings a little, just think about this.

    If it is something that can be fixed within 5-10 seconds, totally tell em. Mints, gum, mini portable mouthwash, teeth brushing. Easy fixes! But be gentle when you go about it, since its something people might be a bit sensitive over

34. I’d want someone to tell me and I’ve told my significant others when necessary. I think it’s all about how you do it, making sure you let them know you’re not trying to hurt their feelings but that it’s an issue and if there’s anyway you can help them.

35. This has got to be tonsil stones.
    If she watches popping videos you can start a conversation about how you just saw one of them and didn’t know what tonsil stones were and how they can cause bad breath and cause infection. Say it made you start poking around back there or something. Start with not telling her anything directly and just plant the seed.

36. As someone who has been told about something potentially embarrassing/ mortifying… there is a kind and gentle way to go about it. Maybe do a little extra something nice to boost her confidence. I believe in you OP! Maybe make it about your sensitivity to smell, and desire to be close to her, to help her save a little face. Overall I’d want to know, and know that my partner can tell me when something is bothering him to give me a chance to adjust or talk about it.

    How she reacts is important to see how your relationship handles a bit of stress! Good luck!

37. This reminds me of my friend’s husband.

    One day his breath started to absolutely stink, seemingly for no reason. It got to the point where my friend confided she couldn’t stand to be around him anymore. Turns out he was eating massive amounts of Brazil nuts everyday, and his foul breath was a symptom of selenium poisoning.

38. Oooh.. I was seeing someone who had bad breath, it was an instant turn off and boner killer for me.. we didn’t see each other for much longer. I don’t really have advice though sorry lol

    Smell and scent compatibility (including the not so great smells) is really important to me, if they don’t have smells I like I usually just move on. Life is so much better when you’re with someone whose scents turn you on.

    Further, I was with someone who had NO SCENT, seriously, huge whiff of her armpit: nothing, downstairs: nothing.. breath: nothing (I can live with this one) she was great and all but, I was always disappointed she didn’t have a scent. It’s like taking a big whiff of (your favourite food) and there being no scent, MEH.

39. **She got in my car the other day and I had to crack the window a bit for fresh air.**

    I feel bad for laughing out loud at this.

40. Some people get bad breath from smoking cigarettes or vaping. Idk how to approach it but metal tongue scraper in the morning and at night makes a big difference