2 Yr Old Really Bad Breath

She may have tonsil stones. If you are unfamiliar with these, google it out. Basically, tonsil stones are where food, debris, cells, etc get caught in the pits of the tonsils. After a while, they really start to smell and cause horrible breath. I have very porous tonsils, and have had these my whole life, ever since I was a small child. A dentist can see them, but you can too (if you have a willing recipient). Just have her say ahhhh and look at her tonsils with a flashlight. If she has tonsil stones, they will appear as white or yellow spots in the pits of her tonsils. They are completely harmless and usually come out on their own. Children are usually more prone to them because a child's tonsils are larger. Anyway, just a thought! Hope you get to the bottom of it!

I just took my 16 year old to the dentist for the same reason!! Dentist said that because he is not drinking enough water, the saliva in his mouth is too thick (because he is slightly dehydrated) and that is breeding bacteria in his mouth that the spit would normally wash away. It cant wash it away because it it too thick!

Try making her drink more water.

Hope this helps!

W.

Hello A.,

yes, perhaps the best thing to do is to take her to the dentist to make sure there isn't an absess somehwere. also, could she have a sinus infection? does she get probiotics? do you think she could be eating something that's affecting her breath? do you brush her tongue? Good luck! ~C.~

Excellent answers all. But just to publish so all moms can read this. If your baby has teeth, take them to the dentist. Seriously, if they can sit up in a chair, all the dentist will do is take a peek, no tools, xrays, etc. until they are a bit older, but they can visually see problems coming and give you pointers on dental care if things don't seem right. The sooner they get used to going to the dentist with all the equipment, etc., the less scared they will be later when actual work is done. My son had 16 teeth on his first birthday so you betcha I got him to the dentist as early as possible. Best wishes!

Might I recommend you take her to the doctor's first. When I complained of my then 3-yo's horrible breath to her ped. dr at her 3yo well-child check, the dr took exactly 5 seconds to diagnose the problem -- sinus infection.

I agree with Dawn, It could be tonsil stones. My 16 year old has had them since she was a toddler. I had them too when I was younger. Horrible smell!!! My toddlers now, don't seem to have them but get the worst breath after eating bananas! Even brushing afterward does not help.

Does she drink water? Or enough water?
Lack of water can cause bad breath as well.... due to dry mouth or dehydration.

Also you might try doing a Google Search on what causes bad breath.

Good luck,
Susan

I took my daughter to the dentist just after her first birthday. One reason why is so that she would not fear dentists as she grows, but the ADA recommends it, too. There may be a colony of bacteria that your toothbrush can't reach. I would check it out because the little baby teeth are the placeholders for the adult teeth, and if the gums are affected, it could cause some issues. Good luck!

My nephew did that and when his mom took him to the dr they found part of a nerf ball in his nose. It had actually gone rotten.

Try taking her to her Ped. Sometimes when they aren't going to the bathroom like they should they get that nasty breath and NOTHING gets rid of it until they start going regularly. She may need a stool softener. My oldest had this problem. I thought she was good to go but found out it was backing up into her stomach. Not enough to make her sick...(just enough to make me a bit green around the gills)

The cause can be from a lack of nutrients..ie..water and potassium or a problem with her teeth, or even foreign material. My son once had a terrible smell from his mouth and nose and that turned out to be a foreign object in his nasal cavity as he was young and I was not aware he was sticking things up there. My suggestion is not to start with a dentist or self remedy...call your pediatrician. Your child is young and cannot completely express what could be bothering her and the pediatrician will know what to look for. Good Luck

you should definately take her to a dentist. try a pediatric dentist. we go to one and they are so much gentler and nicer than a regular adult dentist. they make it fun for kids and only see kids so they really know how to deal with them.

I would absolutely take her to a dentist and call the pediatrician's office to be sure.

Our pediatrician recommended going to the dentist as soon as 18 months anyhow because of the number of teeth they have by then, and both of ours had mouth trauma between 18 months-2 years anyhow that landed us there. Neither were traumatized. A good pediatric dentist has a lot of mechanisms for putting them at ease.

It would also be worth a call to the pediatrician to be sure it isn't something medical that needs to be looked at.

I wouldn't hesitate to take her to the dentist. Taking her young will help her get used to the dentist and be less apprehensive as she gets older. Try to make it a fun experience and make sure to have a kid-friendly dentist - mine has tv's in every chair and will play cartoons for the kids, etc and they love going. Then they get treat bags after they are done....so they like going back. Good luck!!

She could have a tooth or teeth that may have rotted from the inside, I would take her to the doctor to check sinuses as mentioned previously and then to the dentist from there. hth

My 16 month old has this problem too and I am curious as to what the other moms have to say. From what I have read on-line, possible causes are mouth breathing and sinus problems. If I remember right, they both create an increase in bacteria build-up in the mouth and that one suggestion was to use a power toothbrush because it would be more likely to get all the germs and bacteria. I haven't tried it yet because I'm concerned that it will scare her, but I intend to try it out once she's a little older.