What are the reasons for children grinding their teeth during the day?

Teeth grinding is also called teeth clenching. Generally speaking, it occurs when children are sleeping at night. The children grind their teeth unconsciously, which is similar to snoring and is a meaningless behavior. However, many parents have reported that their children grind their teeth during the day. Does daytime teeth grinding mean that there is a problem with the child’s health? How should it be treated? Let’s solve your doubts below.

Some children often grind their teeth when they fall asleep at night. Medically known as bruxism. Nocturnal bruxism occurs when you are asleep and you are not aware of it, so you cannot control it. Nocturnal bruxism is an abnormal function of the oral cavity, and the cause of its occurrence is not yet fully understood.

It is generally believed to be related to the following factors: 1. The presence of parasites in the intestines, especially roundworms, which survive by absorbing nutrients from the human body. It moves in the human stomach, and in addition to causing stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and in severe cases intestinal obstruction, it sometimes causes people to grind their teeth at night. 2. Being too tired or too excited during the day, especially when children are too tired from playing, the cerebral cortex does not get a complete rest after falling asleep, and some nerves are still in an excited state, which will also cause teeth grinding after falling asleep. 3. Indigestion. The stomach’s digestive function cannot effectively digest food due to certain reasons such as stomach disease, resulting in teeth grinding after sleeping. 4. Disordered occlusion of teeth, etc. Grinding teeth at night is very different from the friction of chewing food during the day. When chewing food, the teeth are constantly lubricated by food, water, and saliva during the friction process, mainly chewing food. So, how can we prevent and treat it?

1. For children with nocturnal bruxism, parents should make sure they relax mentally, especially 1-2 hours before going to bed, and avoid doing any strenuous activities. 2. Pay attention to adjusting your diet, eat some easily digestible and nutritious food, and don’t eat too much for dinner. 3. If intestinal parasites are found, deworming should be carried out under the guidance of a doctor. 4. If the teeth are unevenly arranged or the bite is disordered, correction is required. 5. If bruxism cannot be corrected at night, you can go to the oral department of the hospital to make a "plastic tooth pad" called a bruxism appliance. Wear it between the upper and lower teeth when sleeping at night to prevent nighttime teeth grinding and protect teeth.

The situation of teeth grinding during the day and at night is actually similar. If a child grinds his teeth for a long time, he needs to be taken to a professional hospital for examination. In normal times, parents can give their children some easily digestible food and pay attention to nutrition.