Japan's stressed salarymen suffer halitosis epidemic during recession

[democritus]

Japanese 'salarymen' are suffering an additional burden to the economic crisis: chronic halitosis.

As if looming unemployment were not enough to cause sleepless nights for legions of the country's businessmen, they are now falling victim to an unfortunate side effect of work-related stress.

Ichiro Saito, a professor of dentistry at Tsurumi University, said that he has witnessed a dramatic increase in the number of people experiencing "dry mouth" syndrome and he believes that as many as 30 million of his countrymen are now afflicted.

According to Prof Saito, humans secrete around 1.5 litres of saliva every day, a response that is controlled by the nervous system. Stress - brought on by an irate boss or a missed deadline - affects the nervous system and inhibits the secretion of saliva, meaning that less naturally occurring "mouthwash" is available.

A dry mouth is a dirty mouth and one that quickly develops an unpleasant odour, Prof Saito said.

The complaint is exacerbated by the ageing process and the side effects of medicines, as well as the individual's diet.

In a recent book on the complaint, Prof Saito suggested that people chew gum and carry a bottle of water to keep the mouth lubricated. He also suggests that food be chewed thoroughly and, in these testing economic times, that teeth be brushed more frequently.

Source Telegraph.co.uk

Hmmm... now the next time I have bad breath, I'll just say i'm stressed....

[dkkat]

lol mouth-washing... is that why my mouth feels better after i eat (better than drinking water)... sorta like a toothbrush

[edmcel]

I'm not entirely convinced that halitosis is the only symptom of stress. Halitosis can be a sign of poor health, which may be neglected in times of economic hardship, especially if one is trying to make ends meet and may not be properly nourished. Chronic liver failure, respiratory infections, and metabolic diseases such as diabetes are also causes of halitosis!

[Kuri_Shingo]

The least of the worries caused by over-working. I can only imagine the amount of stress related problems in Japan and would really like some societal reform in Japan.

[natcaasi]

I wonder if the overly-stressed children/adolescents are similarly afflicted too ...