What causes teeth grinding while sleeping?

Bruxism refers to the habit of grinding teeth during sleep or unconsciously during the day. It gradually worsens over time and is a long-term vicious cycle disease. So what are the common causes of teeth grinding?

1. Common causes in children

(1) Intestinal parasitic diseases, especially ascariasis, are quite common in children.

(2) Gastrointestinal diseases and oral diseases.

(3) Giving children indigestible food before going to bed may stimulate the corresponding part of the brain after the baby falls asleep, causing the chewing muscles to continue to contract through the nerves.

(4) Neurological diseases such as psychomotor epilepsy, hysteria, etc.

(5) Mental factors: children may be emotionally agitated, overly tired, or emotionally stressed during the day.

(6) Vitamin D deficiency Children with vitamin D deficiency rickets will suffer from bone decalcification, muscle pain and autonomic nervous system disorders due to calcium and phosphorus metabolism disorders in the body. They often experience excessive sweating, night terrors, irritability and nocturnal teeth grinding.

(7) Irregular teeth arrangement, excessive use of the chewing muscles or long-term chewing with one side of the teeth, as well as poor tooth occlusion, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, can also cause nocturnal bruxism. Moreover, children with irregular teeth often have abnormal positions of their chewing muscles. When they sleep at night, their chewing muscles often contract unconsciously, causing bruxism.

(8) Teeth grinding during the period of tooth replacement When children are between 8 and 11 years old, they are prone to mild teeth grinding due to itchy gums. Mild teeth grinding during this period is normal. If it is more serious, treatment is required. After this stage, it will usually disappear on its own.

(9) Influence of emotions and daily routines. Intense study, high pressure, watching thrilling fighting scenes on TV at night, and excessive playing before going to bed can all cause bruxism. In addition, if a child is scolded by his parents for a long time due to something, causing depression, uneasiness and anxiety, he may also experience nighttime bruxism.

It can be seen from this that bruxism is basically caused by some kind of disease. Some children have been grinding their teeth for a long time. Although they have received corresponding treatment, the cerebral cortex has formed a strong conditioned reflex. Therefore, the grinding action at night will not disappear immediately, and it is easy to form a habitual bruxism. In particular, although gastrointestinal diseases have improved, gastrointestinal dysfunction still exists. Therefore, the grinding action cannot be corrected in a short period of time, and a longer period of treatment must be persisted to achieve improvement.

2. Adult reasons

(1) Psychological factors such as work pressure, nervous tension, anxiety, depression, anger, etc.

(2) Gastrointestinal diseases and endocrine disorders can also cause this.

(3) People who lead irregular lifestyles for a long time, are overly fatigued, or engage in fine work, such as athletes, watchmakers, etc.

(4) Lack of trace elements in the body can easily lead to this disease.

(5) Habitual bruxism caused by long-term teeth grinding.

In addition, people who are introverted, emotional, and have a habit of chewing things in their mouths are also prone to bruxism. Oral physiology and psychology believe that the oral cavity is the first source of excitement in the human body, a channel for communication with the outside world, and has the function of expressing emotions such as tension and pessimism. Studies have found that oral diseases do not seem to be important in the causes of bruxism, and psychological factors occupy the primary position. From a psychological perspective, bruxism represents a psychological condition, a feeling of frustration and anxiety. It is a subconscious psychological pressure, which is more prominent when you are angry, anxious, resentful, pessimistic and abused. When people try to escape subconscious psychological pressure, they may grind their teeth in dreams or during sleep.