How does stress harm your dental health?
Dr. D.Sendhil Nathan MDS, DNB Prosthodontics And Implantology
Do you think stress is a factor that affects only your mental health? Then you are wrong, it affects not only your mental health, but also your dental or oral health. Know the early warning signs of your body due to the stress and take steps to reduce your stress.
1) Biting your nails
When you are in stress you automatically start biting your nails. This is the most common thing that many peoples do and that can be harmful to your oral health as well as your overall health. Nail-biting also moves your teeth out of position and damages your teeth. The germs that are present in your nails get into your mouth leading to mouth infections. Also, viruses and bacteria that are present on your nails and fingers go into the balancing portion of your body and creates various health problems.
2) Diseases in gum
When you are in stress it will be harder for your body to fight against infection. When there is an infection in your gums it causes gum disease and cause loose teeth, bleeding gums, and bad breath. Stress causes you to grind your teeth and make some peoples to smoke cigarettes. This will lead to serious gum problems.
3) Mouth ulcer
If you often suffer from painful mouth ulcers they are due to deficiency of vitamin B and a higher level of stress. They also occur due to hormonal imbalance and sensitivity to sodium lauryl sulfate, a foam producing agent present in many commercial branded toothpaste. Another reason is allergic response to bacteria in mouth. Several studies say stress is a big factor for canker sores. Canker sores will be reduced by reducing stress along with some home remedies.
4) TMJ Disorder
TMJ (Temporomandibular joints) are the joints that help you to move your lower jaw. Swelling or stiffness in these joints leads to TMJ disorder. Overuse of these jaw muscles causes clenching of teeth and grinding which harm your teeth. Stress is a major cause of these problems.
5) Grinding your teeth
You grind your teeth when you sleep, and it is a common oral health problem. Due to the grinding of teeth you will get affected with headaches, sleeping disorder, chronic jaw pain, sore jaw and teeth damage. They also loosen your teeth or even break it. The main factor for grinding teeth is stress and anxiety.
6) Burning feeling in the mouth
A dry, hot and burning feeling in your mouth occurs and this is called burning mouth syndrome. Stress, anxiety, and depression are a part of this syndrome. Dryness in the mouth will be more common in women after menopause. Thus hormonal changes also involved in this problem. This syndrome is a painful disease and it damages your teeth and gums. Smoking and drinking are the other factors that cause this problem.
How to reduce your symptoms
Find out the problem and figure out why you are stressed. Once you have found the reason for your stress, try to reduce it by finding the solution Here are some tips to get relief from various oral problems.
- Consult a dentist for teeth grinding problem and get a custom-fitted night guard. It will prevent you from tooth damage caused due to grinding and clenching. They also create a cushion to remove stress on your joint tissues and aching muscles.
- Reduce eating hard and crunchy foods
- Stop the habit of smoking and liquor drinking.
- Antiviral drugs help you to prevent cold sores
- Use a sunscreen(SPF 30) to help reduce the sores or avoid sun.
