Sleep apnea and bruxism
In a previous post I discussed sleeping with your mouth open. At one time I had a problem with grinding my teeth while I slept. This is called bruxism . Approximately 8 percent of the population clench or grind their teeth every night. It can be caused by anxiety, stress, smoking or sleep apnea among other things. The consequences of this disorder can be dental problems, headaches, earaches and lack of sleep. I wouldn’t have thought that folks with sleep apnea wouldn’t have bruxism since most sleep with their mouth open trying to grasp for air. But apparently it is true. According to the National library of Medicine and National Institute of Health bruxism rarely occurs alone and that many of those who have it also have sleep apnea. The first thing that comes to mind as a cure would be a dental device which would prevent the teeth from clenching and grinding. But many feel that dental devices only help those with mild sleep apnea. Of course if you didn’t have sleep apnea, the de...