Night Guards
Grinding your teeth in your sleep, also known as bruxism, is an unconscious behavior that can cause serious consequences for your oral health. If you find you are grinding your teeth in your sleep most nights, our dentists can help improve your dental situation.
Why Do People Grind Their Teeth?
People can end up grinding their teeth in their sleep for any number of reasons, including a misaligned jaw or bite, anxiety or stress, TMJ disorder, certain medications, and other medical conditions or diseases.
Teeth grinding can become a serious dental issue, however. Over time, grinding your teeth can cause cracks or chips in your tooth enamel, headaches, pain or stiffness in your neck or jaw, or even severely damaged teeth.
How to Stop Grinding Teeth
If your teeth grinding is an ongoing problem, our Grand Rapids dentists might recommend a night guard. A night guard is a type of mouth guard that forms a barrier between your upper and lower teeth, preventing you from grinding them and keeping your bite aligned while you sleep.
Should you decide that a night guard could work for you, our team will create a custom night guard that’s fitted to the shape of your mouth for maximum comfort. It might feel awkward to wear at first, but once you get used to it, you won’t even notice it’s there.
At your appointment, our dentists will also discuss other ways to help reduce your nighttime teeth grinding. They may suggest that you cut back on alcohol or caffeine consumption or even stop chewing gum, as these can all increase your teeth grinding.
Start Sleeping Soundly with a Night Guard
If you struggle with grinding your teeth, call our night guard dentists at Bander Dental Group. Our team is always willing to find a solution that works for you. Visit our office or give us a call at (616) 949-5980 to make an appointment today.