Night Guards For Teeth Grinding: How Do They Function?
Bruxism or night grinding often occurs when sleeping and is also called nocturnal bruxism. Subconscious grinding and clenching of your teeth can even happen when you are awake. It is called awake bruxism.
If you grind your teeth, there are actions you can take to prevent the occurrence. Depending on the underlying causes of your teeth grinding and symptoms, some remedies function better than others. Your dentist or primary care provider can help guide you on the best solution to end bruxism.
Bruxism Explained
If you are affected by the problem of bruxism, you are not alone. People tend to grind or clench their teeth when they are stressed when sleeping. Fortunately, dentists can create mouth night guards helping you to prevent teeth grinding.
Bruxism is not a minor problem, and the pressure exerted on your teeth every night is sufficient to crack and wear the enamel. Dentists want to ensure you are comfortable even as you try to protect your teeth. Continue reading to learn how a teeth grinding night guard helps to prevent bruxism symptoms.
Night Guards for Teeth Grinding
A night guard for teeth grinding is an occlusal appliance helpful for sleep bruxism. You wear the night guard when sleeping to stop teeth grinding. Many people are unaware they are grinding and clenching their teeth until the sounds they make wake up their bed partners. When you complain about jaw pain to your dentist during routine appointments, the professional may diagnose you with bruxism when they notice worn tooth enamel.
Some of the common symptoms of teeth grinding include fractured teeth, worn tooth enamel, sleepiness during daytime, and waking up with jaw pain.
If you are affected by chronic bruxism, you benefit from customized mouth night guards created by your dentist because they help protect your teeth from damage. The appliances reduce the strain on your jaw. Customized night guards are expensive than over-the-counter remedies but are a better choice for many people.
Over-the-counter night guards are made from plastic and aren’t as comfortable as the customized variety. When purchasing the OTC variety, you must look for one developed from soft plastic or the type you can boil to soften it. People with minor teeth grinding may find over-the-counter devices attractive because of their lower costs.
Treatment for Bruxism
Dentists can create a custom nightguard to protect your teeth when sleeping as a measure of preventive dentistry. The device functions by forming a protective layer between your upper and lower teeth. It ensures that when you bite or clench down when sleeping, the night guard prevents your teeth from contacting each other.
You require a couple of appointments to have your customized night guard created by the dentist. During your first appointment, impressions of your mouth and teeth are taken for the dental laboratory to create your device. The lab uses the images to make your custom night guard.
You can return to your dentist a few weeks later for another appointment when the night guard is ready for you to wear. Dentists will ask you to wear the night guard in their presence to ensure the fitting is comfortable. If required, they will make any adjustments necessary to ensure you can sleep comfortably with the new mouth night guard.
Why Must You Get Treatment for Bruxism?
If you are frequently waking up with jaw pain, you are not getting the quality of sleep needed to stay energized all focused during the day. Fortunately, dentists have a remedy for you which they create after taking impressions of your teeth and mouth.
Bruxism also brings you the need to seek therapeutic dentistry treatments because the forces exerted on your teeth from this problem are sufficient to wear down the enamel. Bruxism can also crack or loosen your teeth. If you suspect you have bruxism, dentists recommend that you get a night guard as soon as possible as a method of protecting your overall health and preventing the requirement of expensive restorative dentistry. The mouth guard for teeth grinding protects your smile, ensuring you can avoid costly dental treatments if you desire to protect your smile.
Nightguards function by keeping your teeth from coming into contact with each other when you are asleep. Customized night guards are an excellent option to get over the problem of bruxism that could be causing discomfort in your jaw and lowering the quality of sleep you get.