The quest for a healthier life often includes eating better and exercising. You carve out time to prepare and eat meals that are balanced and packed with nutrition for sustaining good workouts daily. Many also include self-care in the quest for a healthy lifestyle and make facials and massages part of health and wellness. With all the steps taken to live a healthier life, pieces are missing for many. Please continue reading to discover why dental health is essential to a healthy lifestyle and how it affects our sleep, both vital to a healthy lifestyle.
Bad breath is only one outward sign of poor oral health. The lack of good oral health affects more than just breath; it reaches levels deep in our bodies that can cause significant health issues. Poor oral health can lead to cardiovascular disease, pregnancy complications, pneumonia, and other bacterial diseases that spread through the body. In addition, dental health can also affect our sleep.
With rest, restoration, and dental health being equally important to a healthy lifestyle, below are some ways that dental health affects sleep.
There are several reasons why mouth pain can be so severe that it can cause you to lose sleep. Some of those are:
Abscess
An abscess is not visible but causes severe and acute pain. It is when a pocket of pus forms under the tissue or space under the teeth. Symptoms include pain, pus, and a lump.
Temporomandibular Joint Pain
Temporomandibular is also known as TMJ disorder limits the movement of the joint and jaw muscles. It involves pain around the ears and chewing difficulty. Some dentists specialize in relieving TMJ like TMJ dentist Worcester MA who are committed to improving the lives of those suffering from facial and jaw pain caused by TMJ.
Periodontal Disease
Periodontal disease is when disease from the mouth has damaged the gums and causes painful jawline areas. Other symptoms include swelling, bad breath, and toothache.
Cavities
Cavities are some of the most common causes of tooth pain. Cavities are tiny holes that form in teeth and can be painful and need repair as early as possible.
Dentin Hypersensitivity
Dentin hypersensitivity is when the inner layer of teeth gets exposed. It is painful, and not dealing with it can cause the tooth to be damaged severely enough to need removal.
Teeth Grinding
Bruxism, commonly referred to as teeth grinding, often happens when a person is asleep and can cause damage to your other teeth and sleep disruptions. It occurs when the tension in the jaws, along with an abnormal bite or missing teeth creates a tightening that makes the teeth rub together.
Seeing a dentist for support in stopping teeth grinding is essential. They can fit you for a guard that will help avoid further ruining your teeth. Other tips to help with grinding are:
Avoid or cut back on caffeine and alcohol.
Don?t chew on anything that is not food, including gum, pens, and pencils.
Train yourself not to clench teeth.
Oral Dryness
Oral dryness is also called xerostomia and can cause those affected to wake up coughing or feeling like they are choking. Oral dryness happens because there is no saliva in the mouth to moisten, which helps food digest and cleanse the mouth. Saliva also helps prevent bacteria from causing infection in the mouth and body. It can happen because people breathe through their mouths because of diseases like diabetes, HIV, or even medications.
Symptoms of dry mouth include frequent thirst, sores in the mouth, cracked lips, a dry feeling in the throat, a hoarse voice, and more.
Some ways to help with oral dryness include brushing two times a day, flossing daily, and visiting a dentist twice a year. There are also mouthwashes and toothpaste to help with the dryness. Some surgeries can repair the salivary gland if that is why you are dealing with oral dryness.
As you can see, bad breath is only one outward telltale sign of poor oral health. Other symptoms of needing more focus on dental health can affect or cause sleep issues. The issues listed above are just a few ways that neglecting dental health can affect sleep and why both are vital to good overall health.
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