Anxiety and halitosis
Subjective halitosis, considered pathological, is what is known as being aware of halitosis without objective confirmation of halitosis by other people or halitometer measurements. And it has been reported to be associated with subjective high-frequency social anxiety disorder.
Autodynia results from the misperception that one emits unpleasant body odor to others, and in general, autodynamics are also known to focus on multiple body parts. The mouth, however, is known to be the area of greatest concern for people with autodynia, which may mean that the two conditions share similar characteristics.
The researchers were investigating the potential causal relationship between pathological subjective halitosis, autodysphoria, social anxiety, and an obsession with the smell of body parts.
A total of 1360
female students (mean age 19.6±1.1 years) were asked to complete self-administered questionnaires on pathological subjective halitosis, autodynia, social anxiety, and immersion in the odor of body parts such as the mouth, body, armpits, and feet.
Following the developed scale of pathological subjective halitosis, the participants were divided into three groups based on their scores (i.e., level of pathological subjective halitosis).
Bayesian networks were used to analyze the causal relationships between pathological subjective halitosis, autodynia, social anxiety, and preoccupation with the odor of body parts.
Results.
There was a statistically significant difference in the results of autodynia and social anxiety among the various levels of pathological subjective halitosis (P <0.001).
Residual analysis showed that students with more severe levels of pathological subjective halitosis showed greater concern for mouth and body odor (P <0.05).
Bayesian network analysis showed that social anxiety directly influenced pathological subjective halitosis and autodynia, and that obsession with halitosis and body odor also influenced pathological subjective halitosis.
Tsuruta, M., Takahashi, T., Tokunaga, M. et al. Relationships between pathologic subjective halitosis, olfactory reference syndrome, and social anxiety in young Japanese women. Relationship between pathologic subjective halitosis, olfactory reference syndrome, and social anxiety in young Japanese women. BMC Psychol 5, 7 (2017). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-017-0176-1
Summary
This study concluded that people with social anxiety were found to be more prone to halitosis. Therefore, it seems that a medical and psychological approach is needed to treat halitosis.
The study suggests that avoidant thoughts and body dysmorphic disorder may be the cause. As a result of these factors, people are often misdiagnosed when they go to see a doctor for halitosis, and this syndrome is also known as "doctor shopping".
Do you think you smell? It is recommended that people who are aware that they have bad breath consult not only a doctor, but also a psychologist (preferably a qualified person such as a national license).
In general, oral, nasal, upper respiratory, and pulmonary causes of halitosis are cited, but it is difficult to determine which is the cause on your own.
If you have a problem with your breath, you should consult your doctor before you spend a lot of money on bad breath products.
