Stress leads to teeth grinding at night--study

Researchers at Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany have claimed that stress triggers bruxism, a condition of involuntary tooth gnawing during sleep.

Under stress, our body releases excessive quantity of hormones like adrenaline which lead to disorders like bruxism, besides many others.

"Bruxing can lead to abrasive tooth wear, looseness and sensitivity of teeth, and growth and pain in the muscles responsible for chewing. Its causes are still relatively unknown, but stress has been implicated.”

“We aimed to investigate whether different stress-factors, and different coping strategies, were more or less associated with these bruxism symptoms", said Maria Giraki, lead researcher of the study.

Details of the study
The study looked at 69 people of different age groups out of which 48 were diagnosed with “bruxism”.

The subjects were asked to introduce thin plates in their mouth overnight for a few days. These plates helped in measuring the level of tooth grinding in them.

The study was further followed by three questionnaires that determined the stress levels in the patients.

The researchers found that bruxing was more extensive in people who were coping with stress at home or work.

Visiting a physical therapist, an oral exercise program or a stress counseling session is said to be of help to patients.

Positioning the tip of one’s tongue between the teeth is another useful practice to reduce tooth grinding habits, the researchers recommended.

The reports have been published in BioMed Central’s journal, Head And Face Medicine.

Bruxism
A disorder involving teeth grinding and gnashing during sleep, bruxism is said to be generally harmless, though it can lead to oral damages.

Excessive grinding in patients can, however, lead to crooked tooth, headache, sore jaws, and even fracturing to tooth in some cases.

Approximately 20 percent of all adults are found to grind their teeth while asleep, according to study reports.