In our fast-paced society, with the stresses of work, family, health issues, finances and the struggling economy, many people take out their stress on their teeth.  Some signs of nighttime teeth grinding can be: waking up with sore jaws, frequent headaches, generalized pain from one side of your face, tightness in the jaws, sensitivity of the majority of your teeth or your teeth just ache in general.

Some studies have shown that people can put up to 3-4 hundred pounds of pressure on teeth when grinding or clenching!  Imagine the long-term effects this could have on your teeth.  If you look in the mirror at your teeth and you see signs of wear (see photo above), it’s time to ask your dentist what options there are on having a mouth guard made. 

A mouth guard can help protect your teeth from the damaging forces of grinding and clenching.  A mold of your teeth are made at the first visit.  The molds are sent to a dental lab where a form-fit mouth guard is made. Then in approximately 2 weeks, your dental office will fit you for the guard and make necessary adjustments.

A tooth breaks, chips or feels loose…but it doesn’t hurt.  We see it in the dental office everyday, small problems that turn into big problems down the line.  When a tooth breaks or feels loose, something has been compromised and if it’s not fixed immediately, bigger problems can occur such as infection, more tooth structure can break off or you could even lose the tooth altogether.

The key is: Don’t delay.  At the first sign of a problem, see your dentist.  Many times, you can actually SAVE yourself money by getting treatment quickly.  You could possibly avoid, for example, having to have a root canal or losing the tooth (in which case you would have to replace the missing tooth with a bridge or implant).

Call your dentist today or call our office at 817-292-5957.  Our office is in Fort Worth, Texas.  For more information, visit us at www.hulendental.com