Annoyed

Riggie that has crossed my mind too!
I don't follow the same diet, it's vile.
He's seen a Dr and a dentist. The problem seemed to settle after the antibiotics, but even so id have still se
wanted him to clean his teeth as the food he eats from cleaning them in the morning to going to bed are fatty, meaty, strong cheese coffee etc.
I'm going to address it again tonight after work.

My guesses are that someone else has said something (work?), or he is trying to impress someone (the OP or someone else) or that it is due to gum/teeth issues and hes trying to do a self cure (or has been to the dentist).

My dh is dentist phobic. An sudden increase in brushing, the arrival of various products usually means hes got problems!!

You said numerous times you were splitting up. May be he’s scared of you going and he will be lost without you. So he decided to do something about his breath so you won’t leave he may not show he cares but if your in separate rooms he’s probably worried you will go.

There is a toothpaste and mouthwash called 'Therabreath' which is brilliant - a little expensive but works wonderfully and very, very quickly. You can get it at Boots.

As a retired Dental Hygienist I would advise he sees a dentist or go directly to a hygienist. Chronic gum disease gives off the most appalling smell. Also as other people have said stomach problems will case hallitosis

I can’t understand why he doesn’t smell it himself. Therefore apart from visiting the dentist. A trip to the Doctor wouldn’t go a miss. Why would he not do anything before you moved room? Maybe underlying depression. Not caring about yourself is a sign? Just a thought.

It seems to me that this man cares very little for his personal hygiene, his health and his marriage. "You are what you eat" so if he is eating a very high fat diet consisting of lots of meat he is not going to portray a picture of health is he? The thing is, where did the eating habits start? Do they both eat like that? Does the OP eat that way?

If he was my OH I would have tried long ago to change his diet for his own sake.

The fact that he has now started cleaning his teeth after moving into the spare room says more about the marriage than poor personal hygiene issues.

It sounds to me that you have finally done something that has made him realise what the problem is.

I would assume that he is cleaning his teeth at night now, because like most men he dislikes sleeping alone and would like to come back in to your bed.

So now would be the time to consider whether you want him there or not.

My husband developed bad breath and I used to comment on it when he breathed in my direction. Turned out he had oesophageal cancer! After treatment his breath is fine again. Definitely get checked.

I would not be impressed by him trying now, now that they are in separate rooms. If he had cared enough he would have listened earlier. I would be extremely annoyed and it would be too late!!
Not doing as asked was taking childish stubbornness too far.

He needs to go to a dentist, quickly. If he has periodontal disease or problems with fillings or lack of they need attention. Untreated gum disease can lead to other health problems. Has no one at work tried to address his halitosis? They should, just as body odour is addressed if other staff are finding it offensive.

I think the OP is at a loss as to why he ignored her complaints when they were sharing a bed, but now he's in the spare room he's started to brush his teeth/use mouth wash. Yes, perhaps he's doing it to get out of the spare room, but there's also the matter of ignoring your partner's complaints - I'm assuming that it put a stop to kissing, and anything-else in that department? (Could that have been part of the reason he resisted better dental hygiene). Personally, I think his attitude speaks volumes about other things that are going on in your marriage, and they need to be addressed. Perhaps the lack of dental hygiene is more a symptom than a cause?

He might be thinking of an affair though.

I am sorry OP I can't think of any other reason. Is he showing any sign of wanting to come back into your shared bedroom?
In which case it is you he is missing

Please get him to go to a doctor ! Back in 2004 my husband developed bad breath and as it turned out the doctor sent him ti a specialist who diagnosed him with crohns/ colitis.

Does it matter why he is doing something about it. You can be sure he was not up to anything, nobody would start an affair with someone with bad breath.

I would never refuse the offer of a mint or gum in case it is a hint that I smell.

Some years back when I was suffering from gall bladder problems, my husband very tactfully told me I had bad breath problems, so there could be other underlying causes for your partner's symptoms. So as others have suggested, a doctor's appointment might be appropriate as well.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

urmstongran you took the words right out of my mouth

janeainsworth, I felt your observations re smelly breath and subsequent post were spot on. As soon as I read the post, I thought "gum disease". And yes, abscesses can poison your whole system...and if it's that bad, could easily be fatal. People don't realise what an impact our oral hygiene has on us...and our relationships!
The antibiotic course he was prescribed should have been a warning signal, and should in an ideal world have been followed up by a decent dentist.

Hi Narnia are you new?

It’s half term. ... a dental appointment might be hard to get right now but perhaps make a phone call next week.

I think that some people are missing the point - the OP was asking why has her husband changed his habits now - not asking for halitosis cures. Which he probably has no interest in pursuing.

My brother has horrible breath that I cannot ride with him in a car. He has gum disease which is causing this. He won’t go to a dentist now and his teeth have fallen out.

Whilst I’m not implying Narnia’s husband has this particular illness, I am more sympathising with the predicament.
During a period of ‘not speaking’ (I married a sulker!) my husband caught what he thought was a cold and he filled Every room in the house with the smell of his bad breath. Although I told him his breath was very strong, he couldn’t smell it and therefore it didn’t exist! Every room he went in smelled like, dare I say, dead flesh after he had been in the room! In the end the smell became so bad I insisted on taking him to A&E as clearly the smell of rotting flesh was not right. I was heaving with the smell as I drove him to hospital and had to have the windows open - although it wasn’t much help. It turned out he had a bad case of pneumonia and had fluid on the lungs and ended up in hospital for two weeks. He lost a lot of weight (yippee!) and was very poorly (☹️) but recovered.
Bad breath has other more serious implications than just lack of hygiene so if the dentist can’t find a problem, the next step should be the GP. Sometimes the bad breath is simply caused by rotting food stuck in between teeth and simple flossing dislodges the offending culprit.
To have suffered with his bad breath for so many years shows a strong commitment to your partner so is it possible if his breath no longer smells, you will have a happy marriage moving forward?

Smelly breath does not seem to be the issue since H has decided to do something about it so ask him why he no longer appears to want to share your bed.?

Has he been tested for the H pylori bacteria. My friend had this a few years back. A simple test at the G.P surgery. Her breathe had a certain smell. All cured by a course of strong antibiotics. I would think a trip to the dentist adviseable too