Do Braces Help with Teeth Grinding?

Teeth grinding, or bruxism, can be hard for a patient to detect because it usually occurs while you’re asleep at night. While occasional teeth grinding does not cause major issues, regular tooth grinding can seriously damage your teeth.

What Causes Teeth Grinding?

There are many causes for teeth grinding. Some people grind their teeth when they’re stressed. Others experience teeth grinding as a symptom of sleep apnea. You may also be grinding your teeth as a result of an abnormal bite or alignment, which causes spasms in your jaw muscles due to abnormal pressure where your teeth meet.

Why Is Teeth Grinding a Serious Issues?

Chronic teeth grinding can crack, break, and weaken your teeth, which increases your risk of decay and infection. Repetitive grinding will wear down your tooth enamel, leading to tooth sensitivity, discoloration, and changes in the surface of your teeth. It can also change the alignment of your teeth and cause jaw soreness and TMJ dysfunction.

How Do Braces Help With Teeth Grinding?

Common treatment for teeth grinding includes reducing anxiety triggers and stress in your life, and wearing a nightguard. Braces may help reduce teeth grinding that is due to alignment issues. Depending on the extent of your issues and your oral health history, Dr. Meason will determine whether traditional braces, clear aligners, or other retainers are the best method to resolve your misalignment. Each of these options will gently shift your teeth into optimal alignment, which may help to reduce teeth grinding and the accompanying side effects of jaw pain, headaches, and tooth erosion.

To schedule your orthodontic consultation at Meason Orthodontics, please contact our office today! Be sure to write down any questions you have for our team before your appointment so you don’t forget them. We look forward to helping you have a healthier, straighter smile!

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Nighttime teeth grinding image from Authority Dental under CC 2.0

Categorised in: Oral Health