Dental Night Guard For Teeth Grinding In Calgary

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Sore jaw? Chipped tooth? A night guard for teeth grinding can help!

A nightguard, also known as a dental guard, is prescribed to patients to help treat bruxism — also known as teeth grinding. A night guard may also be referred to as an occlusal guard, occlusal splint, or bite splint.

If you grind your teeth at night, it literally means you clench your jaw and move it in a way so that the upper and lower teeth rub together. This can make some pretty scary sounds, perhaps you’ve heard your partner complain about it before. If your teeth could talk, they’d be complaining too. After all, grinding leads to the premature breakdown of teeth and can result in tooth loss if left untreated.

Visit our Calgary dentist, Dr. Jennifer Silver, to protect your teeth against future damages from nightly teeth grinding!

What is a night guard and how does it help for teeth grinding?

Night guards for teeth grinding are typically made from a plastic material that is custom-made to fit over some (or all) of your teeth. Many night guards only cover the upper teeth, but in some cases, such as if you wear braces, your dentist may create a guard for your bottom teeth as well.

Dental night guards do not stop you from grinding your teeth. Instead, as their name suggests, night guards help guard your teeth against damages caused by grinding or clenching your jaw by reestablishing natural space between your upper and lower teeth and providing a barrier of defence. As a result, dental guards can reduce the risk of cracking or chipping a tooth, as well as straining your jaw muscles. Instead of breaking down your teeth, you break down the guard—which is much easier to replace than your teeth!

8 Common Signs Of Teeth Grinding

Facial pain
Earaches
Headaches
Jaw joint and surrounding muscles feel tender or stiff; it might be painful to open your mouth all the way
Sleep disruptions (for you and/or your partner)
Increased sensitivity of teeth
Jaw locks when you open your mouth
Pain or tenderness when chewing and eating

Only a dentist can determine if you have bruxism, as well as the best solution to treat it and prevent future deterioration of teeth. Book an appointment with one of our Calgary dentists today to find out if you grind your teeth at night!

Ready to stop damaging your teeth every night with teeth grinding?

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Benefits Of Wearing A Night Guard For Teeth Grinding

Decrease wear and tear on your natural teeth
Protect sensitive enamel
Help stop damages to dentures, crowns, and other restoration work
Reduce the risk of chipped teeth and tooth loss
Decrease jaw pain, headaches, and other common symptoms of teeth grinding
Get a better night’s sleep
Prevent damages to your teeth that could lead to the need for costly repair methods such as crowns, veneers, implants, bridges, extractions, and so forth

Overall, it’s less painful and more cost-effective to invest in a night guard!

FAQs

Your night guard for teeth grinding should fit comfortably in your mouth, allowing you to speak normally and breathe without issue. It’s designed to be worn only when you are sleeping. Although, you could wear your night guard while eating or drinking, but we don’t recommend it since that’s going to break down your night guard faster and make it dirty.

It takes some time to get used to wearing a night guard for the first few nights or so, but it shouldn’t be painful. After about a week, it should start to feel more normal and less uncomfortable. For some people, it takes a little longer to get comfortable in their night guard — you may want to try wearing it for a few hours at first and ease into wearing the guard all night.

If your night guard is causing you pain or ongoing discomfort, talk to your dentist. Typically, this relates to a night guard that wasn’t custom made for your mouth or was improperly molded to fit your specific bite.

There are dental guards available for sale that do not require a trip to the dentist, but beware these guards are not custom made like a guard created by your dentist. As a result, it’s likely to be uncomfortable and potentially even painful. Even worse, wearing an improperly fitting dental guard could cause a worsening of certain conditions such as Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ/TMD). It’s extremely important to talk with a dentist before deciding if you should wear a dental night guard or not — contact us today for a free consultation!

Researchers believe the habit is often genetic, but certain factors can make the problem worse such as heightened stress levels, taking certain medications, or drinking coffee shortly before bed. Additionally, certain conditions such as snoring and sleep apnea may be risk factors for teeth grinding.

If you ignore your nightly teeth grinding instead of getting a mouth guard, you are at risk of several issues. First and foremost, there’s the potential to develop Temporomandibular Disorder (TMJ/TMD) — TMJ impacts your jaw’s ability to move!

You may also begin to experience more dental issues since grinding your teeth breaks down enamel, the outer layer of protection on your teeth. Once your enamel is gone it cannot be replaced, thus leading to an increased risk of cavities and other oral damages. You could even experience tooth loss or chipped teeth as a result of grinding.

Common causes of nighttime teeth grinding include:

Stress
Anxiety
Chronic pain
Medication side effects
Poor sleep

These same issues can lead to daytime grinding or clenching as well, which can cause significant damage to your teeth. If you are experiencing nighttime or daytime teeth grinding, see your dentist for a consultation.

Your night guard should be cleaned with liquid hand soap and water. Apply soap and water and brush gently with your toothbrush. Do not use toothpaste as this can be too abrasive and cause scratches. You can also ask your Macleod Trail Dental hygienist for our special cleaner that you can use for occasional soaking and tartar removal.

The average cost for a night guard at our dental clinic is $650. Your dental insurance may cover all or a portion of this cost, so be sure to check with your benefits provider.

About The Caring Dentists of Macleod Trail Dental

Our dentists use their expertise in general and cosmetic dentistry to provide the best, most caring care possible. They love answering dental questions and finding the right solutions for all of our patients. If you need a new dentist in SW Calgary that you can trust, Macleod Trail Dental is here to help!

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