A child in a dream gritters its teeth: disease or norm?

Many parents of infants with the appearance of the first milk teeth encounter such a problem when the child begins to grit his teeth in a dream. The misunderstanding among the people immediately suggests that the worms in the large intestine are to blame for this phenomenon. This statement has been erroneously and long refuted by medical research.

“There is a myth among the people:“ If a child gritters his teeth, it means toil with worms. ” Do not be afraid, this myth has no foundation. In children gritting their teeth, worms are not more common than in others.
But to find out the cause of grinding (bruxism) is still worth it, because it is a direct threat to the teeth themselves. ”

Teeth grinding in a dream in medicine is called bruxism. The study of this disease is carried out by dentists, neurologists and somnologists (specialists in the field of sleep).

The causes of bruxism

The causes of bruxism are not known for certain and cause scientific debate among researchers of this phenomenon. Most experts believe that bruxism can cause:

• Hereditary factors. If both parents (or one of them) had a habit of gnashing their teeth in childhood, then most likely they will be inherited by their offspring.
• Teething. The unpleasant sensations associated with the appearance of new teeth make the crumbs pull in their mouths, whatever they get to scratch their gums. Sometimes the creak of the first clove is added to all this (teeth are cut).
• Studying your own body. The kid notices that “something” appeared in his mouth, which was not there before. The little pean can knock, grit his teeth simply because he likes it.
• Malocclusion.
• Violations of nasal breathing with polyps, adenoids and sinusitis. In this case, the child gritters his teeth due to dry mouth - this increases the production of saliva.
• Lack of calcium and amino acids in the body.
• Stress, negative emotional experiences, various disorders of the nervous system.
• Sleep disturbances. In this case, bruxism can be attributed to the group with such phenomena as snoring, enuresis, nightmares, somnambulism, etc.
• Abnormal jaw development and malocclusion. The child, as it were, is trying to grind his teeth to each other.
• Weaning. Not faded sucking reflex and negative emotional experiences sometimes cause temporary bruxism.
• The first manifestations of epilepsy attacks (in rare cases).

Most often, bruxism, which goes to school age, affects kids 2-3 years old. But it is also observed in children of the first year of lifeteenagers and adults.

Bruxism is not a safe phenomenon, but, fortunately, is quite treatable.

Constant friction leads to a thinning of tooth enamel, the appearance of microcracks and a disturbance in the formation of a normal bite can occur. Bruxism can cause muscle tension in the neck, back, accompanied by headache and toothache.

Bruxism treatment

If your child grinds his teeth at night, a neurologist can recognize the presence of neurological problems. Such diseases are corrected medically and only under the supervision of a specialist.

Baby can be assigned valerianu, tenoten, glycine, Magne B₆.

As a complex therapy are prescribed soothing baths, aromatherapy, sedative herbal supplements.

Sometimes dentists prescribe the use of special protective mouth guards (pads) to treat bruxism, which will protect the baby’s teeth from abrasion of enamel. In case of pain, with bruxism, it is recommended to rinse with a decoction of chamomile and applying warm compresses to the lower area of ​​the face.

If the child grinds his teeth during the day, and sleeps at night serenely, experts should also be seen. As mentioned above, grinding teeth can be caused in infants as teething, malocclusion, and simply the desire to "experiment."

When teething, use special teethersthat the baby can chew on. Use anesthetic gels to relieve pain. Distract the baby from the grinding of a new toy, an exciting game. The physical exercises of the game and walks in the fresh air have a beneficial effect on the nervous system of children.

General recommendations

When treating bruxism (both day and night), doctors insist that the following recommendations be followed:

• Observe sleep, rest, and feeding patterns.
• Provide crumbs rational and nutritious nutrition. Small violinists should be given hard apples, carrots, and cabbage. Active work of the masticatory muscles during the day will reduce their nightly activity.
• Exclude sugar, food with dyes, flavors, fast food from the diet.
• Feed your baby dinner 2 hours before bedtime. This rule does not apply to breastfeeding before bedtime. Of the drinks after dinner, it is recommended to drink only clean water.
• Before going to bed, try to set the child in a calm mood: reading books, not noisy games, is suitable for this.
• Try to be more attentive and patient with your baby. Perhaps your little one lacks affection. Children disliked in early childhood, grow up with a wide range of psychological problems.
• Create a family friendly atmosphere. Scandals, stress entail negative, sometimes irreversible, consequences for the fragile psyche.

Forum Tips

Snowflake: There may be problems with the intestines, gastrointestinal tract. Or maybe before going to bed he gets a lot of impressions ...

Svetlana Borisova: This nervous strain, the same thing happened with me, it was necessary to give soothing weak and to choose more calm games for the night, exclude TV and outdoor games.

Layla-Valeila: If a child gritters his teeth in a dream, it does NOT mean worms, it means overexcitation and not a calm nervous system. Doctors in such cases suggest drinking something sedative or putting an open bottle with valerian in the room. (Not with pills, but liquid)

Ksenia Tax: I, as a psychologist, are inclined to believe that the cause of bruxism is stress, and young children have a lot of them. Sometimes we don’t think about it. Dad and mom raised their voices at each other and didn’t notice, and the child remembers and worries, but on the bill helminths, think for yourself, people would creak cities ...)))