Teeth Grinding – Causes, Treatment & Prevention

Teeth grinding is also referred to in medicine as bruxism. Teeth grinding refers to a mostly unconscious rubbing of the upper and lower row of teeth. Teeth grinding is often accompanied by clear noises.

Teeth grinding can affect both adults and children. As a rule, teeth grinding occurs mainly during sleep at night; however, in rarer cases, it can also occur during the day.

causes

There are many possible causes of teeth grinding. Teeth grinding cannot always be clearly assigned to the appropriate causes.In small children up to the age of three years, teeth grinding serves, among other things, to coordinate the upper and lower milk teeth – through teeth grinding, the teeth adapt to each other in their alignment and position.

In this context, teeth grinding is usually unproblematic and a healthy development process. This process is repeated in a similar form when the second teeth emerge from the jawbone.

If people grind their teeth outside of these developmental phases, this can be caused, for example, by a high level of negative stress . Grinding your teeth can also help to compensate for physical pain.

When to the doctor?

If you are grinding your teeth, you should definitely see a doctor. It’s not an immediate problem that needs immediate attention. However, teeth grinding can disturb your partner at night and also damage your teeth, which then leads to toothache . So that there are no further complications or consequential damage, a dentist should be consulted in any case.

Teeth grinding cannot be treated directly as it is controlled subconsciously. However, the dentist can make a splint that the patient has to wear at night. The teeth can no longer rub against each other and the noise is prevented. This splint must be replaced after a few years as it loses its effectiveness over time. There is no way to treat teeth grinding with home remedies.

Damage to the teeth, such as abrasions or tooth enamel, often occurs as a result of grinding. These must be removed by the doctor. If grinding your teeth causes headaches or other symptoms, you should see a doctor urgently.

symptoms and course

In addition to a grinding noise that is usually clearly audible, teeth grinding can also have a negative effect on the tooth structure. For example, the teeth of people who grind their teeth often show wear of the enamel on the biting surfaces. Frequent teeth grinding can also lead to tension headaches the following day; as well as muscle tension and pain in the jaw area.

Furthermore, teeth grinding can promote the development of sleep disorders and ringing in the ears (also known as tinnitus). Earaches , dizziness and nausea , which may be associated with nighttime teeth grinding, have also been reported .

The course of teeth grinding varies according to the person affected; it can be cyclical (that is, it can appear more and more weakly depending on various personal factors) or it can be relatively constant.

complications

The constant grinding of teeth can certainly lead to health consequences and complications. A chewing splint from the dentist is not always a sufficient antidote. This measure does not end the nocturnal teeth grinding. It only prevents worse damage to the teeth. In extreme cases, bruxism can wear away the tooth substance right down to the gums. The pressure can cause painful fistulas and ulcers to form. A distinction must be made between nocturnal teeth grinding and daytime teeth grinding. Anyone who grinds their teeth with twenty to thirty times the pressure often considers it harmless.

The range of possible complications ranges from defective teeth to acquired jaw misalignments. The triggers of such phenomena must also be considered. Stress, unresolved mental problems and trauma are commonor anger the causes of teeth grinding. In order to avoid complications, the doctor should take countermeasures as early as possible. Otherwise, the consequences of grinding your teeth for years can become expensive. People who grind their teeth often suffer from insomnia and breathing pauses at night. In order to counteract such complications of teeth grinding, psychotherapeutic interventions are conceivable in addition to the bite splint. Long-term effects cannot be avoided without treating the causes of teeth grinding. Tension in the jaw and neck area can be relieved with manual therapy. A visit to a sleep laboratory can be advisable if sleep apnea is suspected.

treatment and therapy

Teeth grinding can be countered by various treatment concepts. For example, there is the possibility of using a so-called crunch or bite splint. Such a splint is mainly worn during the night sleep and is intended to prevent the teeth of the upper and lower jaw from rubbing against each other.

So-called bruxism trainers are electrical devices that react sensitively to noises caused by teeth grinding; Positioned next to the bed, the trainer emits an alarm signal when teeth grinding begins, which interrupts sleep and thus the grinding of teeth. According to the manufacturers, it should be possible for those affected to deactivate the alarm sound again after a while by unconsciously relaxing the jaw muscles without waking up from sleep.

Homeopathy also aims to alleviate teeth grinding with various, individually different active ingredients. If teeth grinding may be due to various stress factors, seeking psychological advice can also contribute to a reduction in teeth grinding.

prevention

Among other things, teeth grinding can be effectively prevented by avoiding the emergence of possible causes.For example, it can help to pay close attention to existing stress factors and to take measures to counteract these factors.

The use of various relaxation techniques (such as autogenic training or methods for active muscle relaxation) can prove helpful here.

In order to prevent teeth grinding as compensation for physical pain, an effective therapy of the existing pain or its causes can be useful.

↳ Further information: Home remedies for teeth grinding