One of the reasons that grinding teeth can be bad is that it can contribute to altering your bite. Pressure on your teeth over time will not only wear them down but can also move them around.
Everybody has a different bite that is defined by how your upper and lower teeth meet. When you get braces as a child or an adult, the main purpose is to change the way your upper and lower teeth come together so that your bite is correct.
Braces show that pressure on your teeth actually move them and adjust their angles. This can also happen with bruxism over a long period of time. Our teeth are not fused to the bone and they will move over the period of a lifetime. Grinding teeth at night can only make this worse.
I have noticed that all of a sudden my bite seems different than it did before. I can't identify exactly what is different but my teeth don't seem to be meeting each other like they did before. My bite seems different and not in a good way.
If you want to learn how to stop grinding teeth, it is a good idea to attack the problem before it does damage not only to your enamel but your bite. Wearing a bruxism mouth guard is an option but one you will probably not follow through with for the rest of your life. Grinding teeth guards are not the most pleasant thing to sleep with and that presents a dilemma for anyone with this problem.
HOW TO STOP GRINDING TEETH
How to stop grinding teeth is the question, if answered, would make someone instantly rich. The most common way people choose is to get a mouth guard and wear it at night. Of course this works best if your bruxism only happens at night.
However, there are people who grind their teeth during the day. They usually do it off and on throughout the day and over the course of months and years, you can imagine the amount of damage that can be done. If you grind your teeth during the day, you at least have a chance of breaking the habit yourself. If you have night time bruxism, that is much harder to control because you can't stop something you are doing while you sleep.
Many people choose to wear a mouth gaurd at night but what do you do if you grind teeth during the day? It is not too practical to go to work or school wearing a mouth guard. Any child who goes to school with a mouth guard is an instant target for ridicule. Adults would also have trouble keeping a job if they wore a mouth guard around all the time. So, the mouth guard isn't an option for those who grind their teeth during the daylight hours.
How to stop grinding teeth during the day is something there isn't an answer for yet. You might try chewing gum as that keeps you occupied on the gum and not on grinding. Chewing gum might also help your jaw get tired and make you less apt to grind when the gum is out. But chewing gum constantly isn't much of a cure and it is only something temporary to divert your mind and cushion your teeth.
Getting to the root problem of your grinding would be your best option but then the reason people grind is different for everyone. Stress counseling is a common choice and can help with your bruxism because it is thought that stress plays a big part for most people. Try to analyze your stress and figure out where it may be coming from. Seeking the help of a professional is always the best option. Your dentist might also have some ideas of his own.
However, there are people who grind their teeth during the day. They usually do it off and on throughout the day and over the course of months and years, you can imagine the amount of damage that can be done. If you grind your teeth during the day, you at least have a chance of breaking the habit yourself. If you have night time bruxism, that is much harder to control because you can't stop something you are doing while you sleep.
Many people choose to wear a mouth gaurd at night but what do you do if you grind teeth during the day? It is not too practical to go to work or school wearing a mouth guard. Any child who goes to school with a mouth guard is an instant target for ridicule. Adults would also have trouble keeping a job if they wore a mouth guard around all the time. So, the mouth guard isn't an option for those who grind their teeth during the daylight hours.
How to stop grinding teeth during the day is something there isn't an answer for yet. You might try chewing gum as that keeps you occupied on the gum and not on grinding. Chewing gum might also help your jaw get tired and make you less apt to grind when the gum is out. But chewing gum constantly isn't much of a cure and it is only something temporary to divert your mind and cushion your teeth.
Getting to the root problem of your grinding would be your best option but then the reason people grind is different for everyone. Stress counseling is a common choice and can help with your bruxism because it is thought that stress plays a big part for most people. Try to analyze your stress and figure out where it may be coming from. Seeking the help of a professional is always the best option. Your dentist might also have some ideas of his own.
BRUXISM MOUTH GUARD - WHERE TO BUY ONE CHEAP
If you have Bruxism (grinding teeth), you most likely found out from your dentist. Especially if you grind at night, you probably didn't have any idea you had the habit.
I found out from my dentist that my back teeth were being worn down and he suggested I get a bruxism mouth guard to stop the damage. Although the damage was not great right now, he said that over time my grinding would lead to big problems with my tooth. He could make me a custom mouth guard and it would cost around $600.00.
Now $600.00 is a lot of money to me especially for something that will probably have to be replaced in a couple of years. The bad part about a mouth guard is that it doesn't do anything to cure the problem. All it does is stop the damage and while that is fine, I didn't want to pay $600 for something that wasn't even a cure.
I wasn't able to stop the grinding myself so I tried to think of where I could get a cheaper bruxism mouth guard that wouldn't set me back so much. Luckily I thought of Amazon.com and sure enough they have one there that is much more reasonable.
If you want to get a bruxism mouth guard for much less you can online at Amazon. It won't be the absolute perfect fit you would get from your dentist but it should be more than adequate to stop the damage to your teeth.
I found out from my dentist that my back teeth were being worn down and he suggested I get a bruxism mouth guard to stop the damage. Although the damage was not great right now, he said that over time my grinding would lead to big problems with my tooth. He could make me a custom mouth guard and it would cost around $600.00.
Now $600.00 is a lot of money to me especially for something that will probably have to be replaced in a couple of years. The bad part about a mouth guard is that it doesn't do anything to cure the problem. All it does is stop the damage and while that is fine, I didn't want to pay $600 for something that wasn't even a cure.
I wasn't able to stop the grinding myself so I tried to think of where I could get a cheaper bruxism mouth guard that wouldn't set me back so much. Luckily I thought of Amazon.com and sure enough they have one there that is much more reasonable.
If you want to get a bruxism mouth guard for much less you can online at Amazon. It won't be the absolute perfect fit you would get from your dentist but it should be more than adequate to stop the damage to your teeth.
GRINDING TEETH CURES AND YOUR DIET
No one knows the exact reason why so many people suffer from grinding teeth at night. There are many factors which may contribute to it including stress and teeth misalignment.
The question is whether your diet affects your teeth grinding and whether changing the food you eat can help solve the problem. If you suffer from bruxism (and even if you don't), you should never chew on pencils or other things that are not food. The teeth in your mouth are meant for food items and things like ice do damage to them. If you want to stop grinding teeth you should not be chewing gum throughout the day as that works the jaw muscles and they get more used to clenching and tightening up.
It is also a good idea to avoid all hard foods like candy and nuts and you should make sure to drink a lot of water every day. Caffeine is another thing that should be avoided so you must limit your intake of all the colas, gourmet coffee, tea, and chocolate.
Changing your diet in these ways can be used to reduce your teeth grinding but probably not eliminate it. There are really no foods that are more prone to "make you grind your teeth" but some foods such as coke and chocolate do make it more easy for you to do. You diet might be a contributing factor towards your grinding teeth but it is not the cure.
The question is whether your diet affects your teeth grinding and whether changing the food you eat can help solve the problem. If you suffer from bruxism (and even if you don't), you should never chew on pencils or other things that are not food. The teeth in your mouth are meant for food items and things like ice do damage to them. If you want to stop grinding teeth you should not be chewing gum throughout the day as that works the jaw muscles and they get more used to clenching and tightening up.
It is also a good idea to avoid all hard foods like candy and nuts and you should make sure to drink a lot of water every day. Caffeine is another thing that should be avoided so you must limit your intake of all the colas, gourmet coffee, tea, and chocolate.
Changing your diet in these ways can be used to reduce your teeth grinding but probably not eliminate it. There are really no foods that are more prone to "make you grind your teeth" but some foods such as coke and chocolate do make it more easy for you to do. You diet might be a contributing factor towards your grinding teeth but it is not the cure.
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