Garlic Breath: Sulfuric Compounds Cause Unpleasant Odor

It's one of a vampire's killers but it tastes great on buttered bread. It's certainly a fun spice to use in different meals, but without gum or mouthwash after a meal, you might be left with the dreaded (dun dun dun) garlic breath!

It's really quite sad because many chefs and health-conscious people around the globe absolutely love this little ingredient. It can create a much added flavor and aroma to any meal, and to add to that, it's good for the heart and loaded with antioxidants. Unfortunately, the sulfuric compounds that give garlic its health benefits and taste also give people an unpleasant odor that is known as the infamous 'garlic breath.'

But why exactly does garlic make your breath smell and how can you get rid of it? According to Science Daily, garlic and other members of the allium plant family, including onions, shallots, and leeks, produce cysteine sulfoxide, which gives them their distinct odor and taste. Sulfuric compounds are very similar to the compounds that are produced by the anaerobic bacteria that cause bad breath. There are two ways that garlic makes your breath smell. The first way is that when you eat garlic, the sulfuric compounds get in your mouth and they will immediately give you garlic breath. However, they can be brushed, flossed scraped or flushed out easily.

Yet, another way garlic can affect your breath is through the lungs. A study completed in 1963 showed that when two doctors fed garlic soup to a patient who suffered from cancer of the esophagus with a tube that entered the stomach through the abdominal wall, completely bypassing the mouth, they noticed that although garlic did not enter the patient's mouth, they still detected garlic in his breath 3 hours later.

This shows that the compound that causes the breath that comes from the lungs to smell like garlic is allyl methyl sulfide (AMS). AMS is a gas that is absorbed into the blood during the metabolism of garlic. From the blood, it is transferred to the lungs where it is then exhaled, with some even through the pores of the skin. In this case, it can be more difficult to get rid of garlic breath, but it will pass with time.