Also known as bruxism, teeth grinding is a common problem in children. Some children grow out of it while others continue into adulthood. And when this problem continues into adulthood, it becomes serious.
Many parents don’t take teeth grinding in children seriously thinking it’s common at this age and will go away once the children grow. But, the fact is teeth grinding is a big issue even when children have their baby teeth. The teeth don’t have to be fully grown to suffer the consequences of grinding. So, if you find your kids are grinding their teeth, no matter what their age is, you should be more careful.
How to know that your kid has teeth grinding issue
The symptoms of teeth grinding in kids are very similar to other dental issues. So, you should evaluate the symptoms properly before taking a step toward treatment. The symptoms of teeth grinding in your kid are headache, earache, jaw pain, chipped teeth, worn teeth, pain in the face or neck, damage to the soft tissue of the mouth, and frequent waking during the night.
Usually, children grind at night, but this doesn’t mean you won’t check them during the day. The Habits of the kids vary. Grinding places strain on the jaw, leading to painful temporomandibular joint (TMJ) over time.
Ways to treat teeth grinding in your kid
You should relieve stress and anxiety
Stressful and anxious children often grind their teeth. It’s a stress-relieving technique, especially before bed. You should try different techniques to eliminate stress from your kid’s life. If possible, you should make changes to your kid’s routine. A few things to do to relieve your kid from stress and anxiety are soothing sounds, a warm bath, and a relaxed bedtime routine. Other than this, you should keep talking to your child and find the reason for stress and anxiety.
You should focus on diet and dental hygiene
Diet for preventing teeth grinding in your kid includes drinking plenty of water throughout the day. Your child shouldn’t go to bed dehydrated. Other than this, you should include healthy food options in your kid’s diet, especially items with high water content. Regarding dental hygiene, brushing twice a day (morning and night) is very important. You should habituate your child to this.
You should use a night guard
If you don’t know the reason for teeth grinding in your child, you should work on preventing damage to teeth and jaw because of the same. You shouldn’t pressurize your child to drop the habit. To prevent damage to your child’s teeth because of grinding, you should use a night guard. A clear aligner will protect the teeth as well as the jaw and head from pain after a bad night of teeth grinding. You should keep replacing the night guard.
Visit an orthodontist
This is the last solution for your kid’s teeth grinding problem. If the solutions discussed above don’t work, you should visit an orthodontist on the referral of your dentist. An orthodontist will solve this problem easily without any further problems for your kid. With the best technique, an orthodontist will treat the misaligned teeth, fixing the bite and improving the appearance of your kid. Misaligned is a common dental reason for teeth grinding. Other than this, the orthodontist will treat the jaw problems caused by years of teeth grinding.
If you keep your child stress-free and visit an orthodontist on time, the chances of teeth grinding will reduce. Or, it will not become a serious issue.