Over a third of parents polled have also noticed that their child has bad breath, which was more common among children who only followed one or less oral hygiene practices all or most days.

"That's why with parents, we don't recommend they use the same spoon as they can pass along dental caries-causing bacteria [to their kids]," she said. "Bottomline, yes, [halitosis] can be contagious ...

Bad breath is often caused by bacteria in your mouth that gives off noxious odors or gases that smell like sulfur. Bad breath, medically called halitosis, can result from poor dental health habits ...