Sometimes children grit their teeth at night. Why does this happen, is everything in the child's order, is he healthy? These questions are of concern to caring parents.
Even grandmothers claimed that if a child gritted his teeth in a dream, then he had worms. But doctors don’t think so. Worms can be one of the far from most basic causes of rattle.
If there was a creak in a dream, then most likely the matter is in bruxism. The main reason for this manifestation in children is increased psychological stress. In such cases, the clenching of the jaws compensates for internal stress, hidden rage, problems at home and at school. In a dream, there is an exit in this form of accumulated emotions that affect the state of the masticatory muscles.
In addition to excessive stress on the psyche, the reason that the child grinds his teeth in his sleep can be an incorrect bite, and with such manifestations of bruxism, you need to consult a pediatric stamotologist.
The signs of bruxism are very peculiar. For example, the grinding of teeth in children lasting from a couple of seconds to several minutes, and this phenomenon repeats several times during the night. Erased fangs and incisors, headaches, jaw pains. If the form of bruxism is very neglected, then there is a crunch and severe pain in the temporal and maxillary joints, gum inflammation occurs, tooth injuries, caries appear, stiff neck muscles become stiff.
Bruxism treatment
If bruxism is caused by a malocclusion, then the child will need a dentist, but if the child grinds his teeth day and night due to overwork and stress, then there is a direct road to a neurologist. In such cases, adequate and proper treatment will be required, which can be done in different ways depending on the cause and complexity of the case.
The dentist can recommend the use of intraoral rubber or plastic applicators, these tools will protect your teeth from injury. The main focus of treatment in this case will be the correction of the bite.
The neurologist will prescribe a sedative for the child, massage, advise you to relax more.
The main concern for the child lies with the parents. Only they can help him deal with bruxism. There are some tricks that will help to cope with the manifestations when the child grinds his teeth in his sleep.
Firstly, it is necessary to eradicate the cause of fears, to determine what caused psychological overstrain. To do this, talk with your child. Maybe something in his room does not allow him to relax, but he is shy about it (for example, the shadow of an object, the emptiness under the bed where imaginary monsters can be, etc.). After finding out the cause of the discomfort, you need to get rid of it together with the baby, move the cabinet, wardrobe, buy the model of the crib that you like.
It is also necessary to review the daily regimen. Perhaps a big burden is placed on the child. School, music, sports section, and at home also classes with parents, lessons - this will be a bit much.
In the evening, before going to bed, you can give a carrot, an apple, something tough to chew. This will help relieve tension from the jaw.
You should not play noisy outdoor games before going to bed, the child should not be overexcited. At night, you must read a book, tell a fairy tale.
If a child grinds his teeth in his sleep, you can try out the third eye search method. To do this, the baby must close his eyes and concentrate all his attention on an imaginary point between the eyebrows on his forehead. This exercise relieves tension from the muscles of the face and reduces the desire to grit your teeth.
Acupuncture is used to treat bruxism. To do this, from the little finger on the wrist, you need to find a point located in the recess of the carpal bone, and massage it before bedtime.
Regardless of the cause of the deviation of bruxism, the child will outgrow it, and the disease will cease over time. But, if there is no improvement, it is imperative to go to a specialist.