Teeth Grinding Clenching

There's no doubt about it -- teeth grinding, clenching and jaw tightening can be very uncomfortable. Luckily there are a variety of ways to not only prevent the clenching action but also ease the pain. If you wake up in the morning with a headache or jaw pain, it's likely clenching is a problem for you. The first thing you should do is consider a protective mouth guard to wear at night. While this isn't an immediate fix it goes a long way towards alleviating the problem.


You can buy inexpensive mouth guards from drugstores and supermarkets, in the tooth care aisle. One top brand is Doctor's, which is made by dentists and sold in many stores. They make both a Classic guard and an Advanced Fit guard that is smaller and more comfortable. There are other brands available on the market as well. Most of these are boil and bite guards, which are fit by boiling them to make them pliable then fitting them to your mouth. There are both advantages and disadvantages to these guards.

One advantage is price, as they range from $10 to $50 depending on the brand and where you shop. Another advantage is convenience, it only takes minutes to fit the guard to your mouth. One disadvantage is that if you make a mistake during the fitting process it is difficult to fix, if not impossible. One of the most common problems is that users bite down too hard during the fitting process causing holes in the guard, which is something you don't want. To avoid this use a mild to moderate amount of pressure. Not pressing hard enough may result in a loose fitting guard, which is also undesirable.

Of course you can go to your dentist and have them create a customized mouth guard for your particular problem. Dental mouth guards are of high quality and made to fit perfectly. They are also more expensive. In addition to using a mouth guard, you can help alleviate the pain of teeth grinding, clenching and tightening by massaging the area or trying warm compresses on the affected area. Your doctor may also have some pain relief strategies you can implement. Even certain jaw exercises done during the day can help you minimize the problem.

Mouth Guards Protect Smiles!

 

Mouth Guard News:

 

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One of the last horse soldiers joins local American Legion Post 629
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Japan lifts foot-and-mouth ban
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Japan lifts foot-and-mouth state of emergency
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Eat 'em & weep - New Zealand Herald

Eat 'em & weep
New Zealand Herald
. but in the end I found the most successful method was to cut a wedge of lemon and lodge it in your mouth like a yellow mouthguard. When onions are cut, .

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Submarine Missouri moves to New London
The submarine's black hull slid along the surface, past New London Ledge Light and into the mouth of the Thames River...



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