Children And Grinding Teeth

Have you ever crept into your child's room at night expecting the sweet sounds of slumber, but instead been greeted by the sound of grinding teeth? Grinding teeth, or Bruxism as it is called, most frequently occurs during sleep at night. Grinding teeth is worse then just the clenching. Millions of people from all over the world have been searching for ways to stop teeth grinding.

Teeth grinding in toddlers usually goes away on its own as the child gets used to having teeth. While teeth grinding in adults is usually a sign of stress, in kids it is probably more of a habit than anything else. Teeth grinding creates wear on the enamel causing cracking and/or chipping the teeth. Grinding your teeth while asleep is more of a problem since most people will grind their teeth much harder than they ever would while awake. It involves repeated clenching or grinding of the teeth, usually unconsciously, and most often at night while the subject is asleep (sometimes called nocturnal bruxism). Grinding teeth is sometimes used as a warning.

Many children stop grinding their teeth when they lose their baby teeth because permanent teeth are more sensitive to pain. But, to completly stop grinding your teeth you need to do some exercises and change parts of your diet. For example, you can purchase the countless different mouth guards available in the market today, but they do NOT help stop tooth grinding permanently. Someone who grinds their teeth every night may experience jaw disorders, damaged teeth, and headaches all because of their bruxism. Dentists will never tell you how to cure Bruxism or stop teeth grinding because dentists and the mouth guard businesses would go out of business. However, if bruxism is being caused by a dental problem, it should stop when the teeth are repaired and realigned.

Teeth can become sensitive, painful and loose, after they have been worn down or cracked by the grinding. The amount of bite pressure placed on grinding teeth causes the teeth and existing fillings to crack. Lots of kids who grind their teeth aren't even aware of it, so it's often siblings or parents who identify the problem.

In most cases, bruxism is a minor condition that poses no real health threat to a child. In addition to grinding teeth, people with bruxism also may bite their fingernails, pencils and chew the inside of their cheek. While the exact cause is not known, bruxism is clearly associated with stress and certain personality types. Like daytime teeth clenching, bruxism is often considered to be stress-related.

Grinding Teeth - Is There A Cure

Grinding teeth is something that is caused by any number of things. Most doctors and dentists attribute it to stress and anxiety. It can also be caused by abnormal biting, crooked teeth, and sleep disorders. As you can see, if you are a sufferer of bruxism, it may not be easy to determine exactly why.

Teeth grinding can be mild or it can be violent so that the teeth become damaged. Most people who have it suffer from a mild case of grinding teeth at night while they sleep. Over time however, this nightly damage can add up to some serious degradation of the teeth. If you know you grind your teeth at night, it is best to find a solution now rather than waiting until more damage is done.

In some cases, the biting at night can be much stronger than what you might do when you are awake during the day. People have been known to exert up to six times more pressure at night than they do when they are awake. This leads to jaw aches, head aches, chipped teeth, and worn down teeth.

Is there a cure to grinding teeth? Most dentists will want to fit you with a mouth guard to use while you sleep. These are custom made and thus quite expensive, usually cosing over $500.00. If you get one of these mouth guards, you may be protecting your teeth but you are not finding a cure. You may still wake up with the sore jaws and the head aches. The mouth guard doesn't stop the problem of teeth grinding, it just minimizes the damage.

Working on your stress levels and finding a way to reduce tension may be a better plan of attack to stop grinding teeth. If you can reduce your stress you will also reduce your unconscious desire to clench and grind your teeth. You can also work on reducing your stress right before you go to bed by doing jaw excesses. There is a way for everyone to cure their own case of grinding teeth. You just have to find it.

Grinding Teeth - Bruxism

Bruxism is the medical term for grinding teeth. Both children and adults suffer from this condition. Most often, it happens during the night and the person doing it doesn't even realize they are grinding their teeth. It is sort of like nail biting, a habit you almost don't even realize you are doing. Grinding teeth can be a habit during the day as well but this is less common.

Teeth grinding is one of the sleeping disorders that is not a serious problem but it can lead to some things that may become problems later in life. Someone who grinds their teeth every night may experience jaw disorders, damaged teeth, headaches and other problems. For this reason, it is advisable to seek a solution once you know you suffer from grinding teeth.

The dentist will usually be the one who will let you know that you have bruxism. The back teeth in your mouth will show signs of being worn down and your dentist should be able to recognize it. You may also become aware of it if you continually experience a sore jaw or headaches. The sore jaw is more easily attributed to grinding teeth as you are using your jaw to do it.

Most of the time, bruxism is not serious and can be dealt with by using a mouth guard or other simple methods along with good dental hygiene. It is important to try to stop it once you know you suffer from grinding teeth before it causes other complications.

Grinding Teeth

Many of us find ourselves grinding teeth at night. There is lots to learn about how to stop grinding teeth in your sleep and this website will explore all those ways.

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