There’s something that no one is talking about, and I often wonder if it’s because they’re afraid to open their mouths. I say that because the thing no one is talking about is:
HALITOSIS.
(Not a guilty pleasure, per se, but something I take great guilty pleasure in blogging about.) I’m not sure why I have to keep explaining this unfortunate ailment, but here we go: Halitosis is the medical term for someone with odorous breath.
And usually, it’s CHRONIC.
As in, IT NEVER GOES AWAY.
The other night I went out for Indian, and the fact that I noticed (and by noticed I mean I think my eyes were tearing up) a table mate’s breath in that environment should tell you everything you need to know about halitosis.
Part of me wonders if it’s sort of like a patronus, where the smell is unique to the smeller. To me, halitosis breath smells like old man poop. And that’s the nice way of putting it. The other part of me wonders if the afflicted know they have it. My biggest fear is, of course, that I have it, and no one is willing to tell me.
There are official ways you can test this, one being a Halimeter. I’m not making this up. According to reference.com, a Halimeter is a portable sulfide monitor used to test for levels of sulfur emissions in the mouth air.
There is also something called halitophobia, or delusional halitosis. This is the intense fear that you have bad breath, and apparently may effect 0.5-1.0% of the adult population. (I’m not sure if that statistic includes me.)
In other words, this is serious stuff, people, and I don’t know why there aren’t charities and 3k walks set up for halitosis sufferers and those willing to stand in their immediate vicinity. It stinks of conspiracy, if you ask me.
Go Jules Go 
You’re right, why isn’t there more publicity and awareness of halitosis? It’s rarely talked about and nobody suspects they might have it, but they’d probably like to know.
I was going to get t-shirts made to help raise awareness, and then thought toothbrushes were probably the wiser choice. “HALITOSIS STINKS” the handles read (at least until I can come up with something better).
ahahaha. did you know that you can get chewable toothbrushes? ps.. love the new header 🙂
I’ve seen those for dogs, but I’ve never seen them for people! Ha! That’s amazing. Thank you!! 🙂