Most people only think about visiting the dentist when they have a check up due or are in pain with toothache, but there are actually a lot of ways that a dentist can help you with everyday life. From anti snoring devices, to mouthguards to stop you grinding your teeth and full mouth rehabilitation to ease the aches and pains radiating from your jaw, a dentist has many skills beyond keeping your teeth and gums healthy.
Anti snoring devices
It is estimated that around 25% of adults snore regularly with a further 20% snoring on occasion. Whilst there are sometimes reasons behind this snoring, such as being overweight, going through the menopause, drinking or smoking too much, or having nasal congestion, it can also happen with no underlying cause. Snoring doesn’t only affect the snorer but also their partner, leading to nights of broken sleep and grumpy mornings. Thankfully, your dentist can help.
As experts in mouth health, dentists are well placed to deal with snoring individuals, even if they have been forced into the appointment by their sleep deprived partner!
Snoring happens when the muscles in the neck relax whilst sleeping causing the airway to partly close and the soft tissue to vibrate when breathing. Your dentist can help by making a custom made dental appliance for you to wear at night to prevent the lower jaw from dropping back when you’re asleep and thus keep the airway open.
Teeth grinding solutions
If you are suffering from facial pains and headaches you might grind your teeth. You probably don’t realise you are doing it as most people only grind or clench their teeth at night or when concentrating on a stressful situation. A visit to the dentist can confirm whether or not you’re grinding your teeth and help find a solution to the problem.
It’s important to spot and treat teeth grinding as it can wear down your teeth and lead to cracks and breakages.
Your dentist can provide a number of solutions to help stop teeth grinding including making a custom made mouthguard or recommending relaxation techniques.
Sports mouthguards
If you play contact sports, don’t wait until you hit something or it hits you to protect your teeth and mouth. You can buy mouthguards off the shelf and mould them to your teeth by putting them in hot water first, but they are not as effective as a custom made device, particularly when worn by children or teenagers whose mouth and teeth are continuing to develop.
Your dentist can make a custom made mouthguard to protect your teeth and gums when participating in sports such as rugby, martial arts, cricket, boxing and hockey. It is also very important to have a custom mouthguard if you wear braces and are going to be participating in these sports.
Full mouth rehabilitation
Did you know that many aches and pains such as headache, neck ache and back pain can be caused by jaw problems? The jaw is a complex joint and if it is not functioning correctly, perhaps because your teeth don’t line up or you grind your teeth, then it may cause aches and pains elsewhere in your body.
Whilst you will probably visit your doctor first with any of these aches and pains, if you are getting nowhere or suspect your pain may stem from a jaw problem, it’s a good idea to book in with your dentist and find out more about their full mouth rehabilitation treatments. This will involve a series of dental procedures and treatments over time to restore and realign the teeth, rejuvenate the smile and relieve the aches and pains.
So, next time you take up a new sport, suffer with otherwise unexplained facial pain or find that you can no longer put up with your partners snoring, consider how your dentist can help.
Dentalia is a dental practice in Basingstoke, offering a range of dental treatments to help people with their everyday lives including teeth grinding solutions and full mouth rehabilitation.
