Did You Know Clenching Your Teeth Can Put Up to 5 Tons of Pressure on Your Jaw?

Clenching force can reach up to 5 tons. "Clenching the teeth, especially while sleeping at night, causes wear and damage to the root tips. Over time this leads to tooth loss."

Night-time clenching linked to stress also causes problems for oral and general health.

Dt. Sevcan Biçer points out that people usually experience this at night without noticing it:

The more stress reaches the brain, the harder the chewing muscles contract, and the person starts grinding and clenching without realising it. The jaw muscles are very strong. Studies show that clenching force can reach up to 5 tons. The jaw muscles do not tire as easily as other muscles, so their contraction force is greater.

IT ALSO LEADS TO TOOTH LOSS

Stressing the importance of avoiding stress to prevent clenching, Dentaloji Oral and Dental Health chief dentist Dt. Sevcan Biçer says that the condition also causes headaches, neck and back pain.

According to Biçer, people often only notice it from jaw pain when they wake up: "Clenching the teeth, especially at night, causes wear and damage to the root tips. Over time this leads to tooth loss."

To prevent bruxism, Biçer recommends massaging the jaw joint with a warm towel for 20 minutes twice a day, avoiding sugar and caffeine, eating soft foods, and using an anti-clenching night guard.