Stress is not only reflected on your face. It not only affects your body, your emotions and your lifestyle. During dental examinations and cleanings, your dentist can detect oral symptoms of stress. Research shows that there is a strong link between stress and oral health.
When stress occurs, a person may increase habits that can affect oral health, such as smoking or drinking alcohol. For this reason, stress has been found to cause a large number of dental problems
Let’s look at some oral health problems that can be caused by anxiety and stress.
- Mouth sores, such as canker sores, have no definite cause but are sometimes caused by stress. Although these lesions are harmless, they can be painful.
- Dry mouth is a condition in which your mouth does not produce enough saliva or the saliva produced is not enough. Dry mouth is not only caused by a condition triggered by stress, but can also be a side effect of medication used to treat depression.
- When you are stressed at night, you may grind your teeth (bruxism) and this causes your teeth to wear down. If you suffer from bruxism, your dentist may recommend a night plate to protect your jaw and teeth.
- Temporomandibular joint (TMJ), that is, the joint that provides the movement of our lower jaw, hurts or makes noise from this joint, trauma and teeth grinding. Anxiety and depression can also trigger TMJ symptoms.
- Stress weakens your immune system and increases one’s susceptibility to infections such as gum disease.
Protecting Your Oral Health Under Stress
To start your battle against the negative effects of stress, you must first eliminate its primary source. If this does not help, you can also seek help from meditation, counselling, yoga or physical therapy to reduce your tension. Stressed people often tend to neglect oral care. During this period, consuming alcohol, cigarettes, acidic and sugary foods in abundance can also cause tooth decay and other problems.
Do not let stress affect your oral health. Even if you are stressed, you should consider the health of your teeth and gums. Not paying attention to this can lead you to a bigger health problem. In addition to your daily oral hygiene such as brushing and flossing, you need to make regular dental appointments, eat a healthy diet and drink plenty of water.