The Top 12 Signs Of Teeth Grinding And What You Can Do About It
Teeth grinding (also known as Bruxism) is a relatively common condition of adults and children in which there is grinding or gnashing of the teeth under certain conditions.
It affects an amazing 10% of the population. Yet Bruxism mostly goes undiagnosed until it starts causing real problems.
The good news is you can easily detect a lot of the danger/warning signs and do something about the condition.
The diagnosis begins first with understanding the underlying risk factors for the condition. Take this little quiz to see how many risk factors you may have:
1. Do you have a family history of Bruxism?
2. Are you under a great deal of job or life stress?
3. Do you sleep walk or do you have nightmares at night?
4. Do you clench your teeth when you are angry?
5. Do you drink a great deal of caffeine or eat a lot of chocolate?
6. Do you smoke?
7. Do you drink alcohol, particularly in the evening?
8. Do you use cocaine or Ecstasy?
9. Do you work the night shift?
10. Do you take antidepressants?
11. Are your teeth out of alignment?
12. Do you snore or do you have blocked nasal passages?
How many did you have?
If you answered yes to three or more of these questions, it is a possibility that you suffer from some degree of bruxism. Perhaps you’ve had it all your life and now it is beginning to show up in your dental visits. Perhaps it’s a condition that you inherited from a parent or other relative.
Remember that it can be mild and easily manageable or it can be severe, causing arthritis of the TMJ (a jaw muscle) and severe tooth damage.
One of the biggest problems is that it is a subconscious behavior. So that unless someone tells the person that they grind their teeth; or unless the person themselves knows of the the problem, it often will go undiagnosed.
If you are at all concerned, the most important thing is that you do something about your bruxism. The good news is there a lot you can do, and much is easy to do.
