If you grind your teeth while sleeping, you could threaten your oral health. It can be easy to prevent problems like cavities and gum disease with a consistent hygiene routine, but when it comes to bruxism, you may need another solution to help you. Patients tend to do this as they sleep and are unaware of it until they notice a change in the strength of their teeth or notice pain in their jaw when they wake up. At Sunny Smiles in El Paso, TX, we can help you solve your bruxism problem.
Why Do People Grind Their Teeth?
Stress, a misaligned bite, age, and other sleep disorders are all factors that can contribute to this habit forming. This happens unconsciously so you may not even know that you are doing it. However, if you notice that you are waking up with a headache or have a sore mouth in the morning, these may be indicators that you have bruxism.
Bruxism Can Affect Your Sleep And Oral Health
While it may not seem linked, your dental provider can help with many sleep disorders. This is important for several reasons, the first being that your sleeping habits can have a major effect on your overall health. That includes physical, mental, and oral health.
During your regular exam and cleaning, we may be able to see signs of excessive wear and tear. This paired with symptoms of a headache or soreness in the morning can be high indicators of bruxism. Once we can diagnose this, we can help create a solution for you.
An Oral Appliance Can Help You
Grinding your teeth often can over time lead to the wearing down of your enamel. This can make you more susceptible to problems such as cavities, weakened teeth, and damaged gum lines, and your teeth could even fall out. Once these problems start to occur, you will have to go through restorative dental treatments that can be costly and time-consuming.
There are at-home remedies you can take to help decrease the severity of your grinding – like lowering your overall stress or creating a better sleep routine. However, these are not always permanent solutions. We can get you custom-fitted for an oral appliance that will fit over your teeth as you sleep to prevent you from grinding them together. The earlier we can examine this problem means the earlier we can prevent serious issues, so be sure to talk to your dentist today.
Schedule An Appointment Today
To learn more, or to schedule an appointment, call the Sunny Smiles office nearest you in El Paso, TX, today! We have offices in the East, Northeast, and Westside of El Paso, and happily welcome patients from all nearby communities, including Chaparral, Canutillo, Vinton, and Sunland Park, New Mexico.