Acidic Smell on Babies Breath

I have noticed a smell similar to nail polish remover on my son's breath just before he comes down with an illness. It has usually been a stomach thing - sorry to tell you that! As with anything, keep an eye on it and if it is still going on in a couple of days put a call in to the doctor. Good luck!

Hi J.,
Both of my children got an acidic smell on their breath when they were teething or when they had a cold. If your daughter doesn't have a fever or symptoms of a cold then she is probably just cutting teeth.

When they teethe there is a an awful smell in their mouth, but it kind of reminds me of dried blood smell.
If she has reflux she could be burping up stomach acid.
Feel around and see if teeth are breaking through. If she seems otherwise healthy I wouldn't worry a great deal.
I know when my kids were going through the teething process their breath did smell different.
If you are really worried, it never hurts to talk to your Pediatrician about it via the phone.

I don't know that I would describe the smell as "acidic" because I don't remember what the smell was like, but when my daughter had an odd breath odor as in infant, turned out she had a nasal and tonsil infection.

I'd go see the doctor if it persists. Is she otherwise acting okay? Eating and drinking fine - not excessively? No fever? Does she have teeth yet? Are they in need of brushing? Her height and weight okay?

Not to alarm you, but sometimes different smells on the breath can indicate a metabolic disorder. Strep throat also causes a more "grape-like" odor to the breath, but your daughter would probably have other symptoms.

It could also be an ear infection. My DD gets terrible breath when she gets an ear infection. It is the only way I know because she never pulls at her ears or even acts upset. I would check with your pediatrician. Good Luck.

I'm not sure what you mean by acid smell. If it smells like a film canister after you first open it then it could be she is a bit dehydrated or as metioned above a metabolic disorder. I'd give it a few days and if it doesn't get better I'd at least call the baby's doctor's office and talk to the nurse or take her to see the doctor. Good luck!

Does it smell a bit like nail polish remover? It may be that she is not getting enough to eat, my daughter was not nursing enough at one point when she was little and that is how her breath smelled for a day or two. Her doctor said that smell is caused by someone burning body fat rather than calories for energy, so sometimes an adult who is dieting may have that kind of smell to their breath too. IF you are nuring see a lactation educator or consultant. It may be that she is not getting enough milk. Strict nursing scedules are sometimes the problem when that happens, or a dip in milk supply that can be remedied through a variety of means, if you want more info on how to up your milk supply just e-mail me at ____@____.com Good luck!

I would give her some yogurt (the good kind with live cultures and no extra sugar or colors), or an acidolphilus supplement. You could also mix it up with a banana which helps give it a natural sweetner. It fixes all the bad flora to good flora and will also help her from getting sick. It definitely helps with bad breathe and intestine problems!!

Hopefully it is just teething. But the smell you are talking about also occurs with diabetics. It is a sickly sweet smell, and is similar to the smell of an alcoholic or someone that has drank alcohol the night before. I don't know too much about it but diabeties runs in my family and my grandfather smelled like that. (And he didn't drink) I am not trying to freak you out, but when I read your question that came to mind.

My daughter once had a horrible smell on her breath too. It turned out she had sniffed a piece of kleenex up her nose. The infection is what smelled. I took her to the doctor and as soon as he smelled her breath, he knew what it was. He said it is quite common for kids to get things up their noses and it all smells the same. He was able to fish it out easily, but it was very yucky.

An acidic smell on the breath (called ketotsis) can be a symptom of diabetes. Take your daughter to your doc and tell him about it.