Blog

Teeth grinding or bruxism is a very real problem to the health of our mouths and body and it’s important that we identify the causes and symptoms of it before it can be treated. London is a very fast city and can be very stressful to live in. We may pump ourselves with stimulants to keep up with the pace, find ourselves losing our tempers on a regular basis and even when we make it home, find it difficult to unwind; these are the prime suspects behind grinding our teeth. If you happen to live alone, it’s often difficult to even know that you have a problem. However, there are a few signs to look out for- head, neck, jaw and ear aches, but a dentist is best able to identify whether or not, you grind your teeth and suggest a course of treatment. Although they can suggest splints, overlays and guards to protect the teeth from being worn away, it will not protect the lower jaw and neck from the pressures placed on them from the grinding process. Teeth grinding requires a more psychological approach. It’s important to alleviate the daytime stresses placed upon you by the city and be unable to unwind at the end of the day. Seeing as a large percentage of teeth grinding occurs whilst sleeping, relaxing before bedtime is essential for de-stressing. This can be achieved with behavioral and stress management techniques, even therapy and hypnotherapy. Once we have identified the problem and the body has learnt to calm down, it is likely that most of the stresses that cause us problems during the day, will not be taken out on our teeth and jaws by clenching and grinding our teeth at night.