Millions of people unknowingly suffer from bruxism—the repetitive clenching or grinding of teeth—with some dentists reporting an increase in young people affected.
Over time, teeth grinding and clenching can damage your teeth and lead to jaw problems, causing teeth to crack, loosen, and even fall out. People aren’t always aware that they’re doing it. “Someone may not know they grind their teeth at night until they’re told by a bedtime partner,” explains Dr. Dena Fischer, a dental health expert at NIH.
Understanding the Mechanics of Sleep and Daytime Bruxism
Sleep is supposed to be the time when the body switches off and rests, but the body can still be surprisingly busy while a person is unconscious. For some people, that discovery comes in the form of a strange, repetitive sound in the night: the grinding of teeth.
In some cases, a partner or family member is the first to notice. In others, the evidence appears later in the form of morning headaches, a painful jaw, sensitive teeth or teeth that have gradually become flattened or chipped.
Bruxism is repetitive jaw-muscle activity involving clenching or grinding of the teeth, and distinguishes between sleep bruxism and awake bruxism. Daytime bruxism can be an involuntary habit associated with stress, anxiety or deep concentration. Rather than the audible grinding associated with sleep, people may simply clench their jaws without realising it. Night-time or sleep bruxism, meanwhile, happens subconsciously during sleep. It can be associated with factors including sleep apnoea and can present with audible grinding, jaw pain and headaches. The distinction matters because a person can grind or clench their teeth without necessarily knowing it. During the day, someone may eventually notice that their jaw is constantly tense or that they are pressing their teeth together when concentrating. At night, however, conscious control is largely absent.
How Brain Arousals and Stress Fuel Nightly Grinding
You can grind your teeth during the daytime, too—although clenching your jaw is more common. Some experts think of daytime and nighttime bruxism as separate conditions, and they may have different causes. Teeth grinding and clenching while awake is easier to recognize, and it’s thought to be caused by stress and anxiety. Some people may also grind or clench their teeth while deep in concentration. Once you realize that you’re doing it, it’s important to figure out when and why. Situations that are stressful or frustrating can trigger the behavior. “People often mention that they grind or clench their teeth while driving in traffic,” Fischer says.
Technology, Diagnosis, and Modern Treatment Options
Your dentist may spot the tell-tale signs of teeth grinding and clenching. These can include wear and early cracks on the outer layer of the tooth. Teeth grinding and clenching can cause a dull headache or tired jaw muscles. Often, nighttime teeth grinding isn’t diagnosed until there are significant symptoms.
How do you treat bruxism? Fischer helps patients by having them set reminders to check their habits. People who grind or clench their teeth during traffic may find it helpful to put a sticky note on the wheel reminding them to relax their jaw. Setting an alarm to go off regularly at your desk can help if you tend to clench your teeth while deep in thought. “An alarm or sticky note can be used as a reminder to make sure that your teeth are apart,” Fischer says. “Tell yourself ‘lips apart and teeth apart’ to help make sure clenching isn’t occurring.”
Activities that reduce stress, like yoga and meditation, may help lessen daytime teeth clenching. Counselling can help you learn to manage intense emotions, which may also ease the habit. If these strategies don’t help, you may consider wearing a plastic mouthguard while awake. Fischer says that a “boil and bite” mouthguard from a store may be enough to stop the problem. Teeth grinding and clenching at night are usually treated with a mouthguard as well. A dentist can make you a custom fitted guard to protect your teeth.
