Allyl isothiocyanate from mustard seed is effective in reducing the levels of volatile sulfur compounds responsible for intrinsic oral malodor.

Oral malodor is a major social and psychological issue that affects general populations. Volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs), particularly hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) and methyl mercaptan (CH₃SH), are responsible for most oral malodor. The objectives for this study were to determine whether allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) at an organoleptically acceptable level can eliminate VSCs containing a free thiol moiety and further to elucidate the mechanism of action and reaction kinetics. The study revealed that gas chromatograph with a sulfur detector demonstrated a good linearity, high accuracy and sensitivity on analysis of VSCs. Zinc salts eliminate the headspace level of H₂S but not CH₃SH. AITC eliminates both H₂S and CH₃SH via a nucleophilic addition reaction. In addition, a chemical structure-activity relationship study revealed that the presence of unsaturated group on the side chain of the isothiocyanate accelerates the elimination of VSCs.