How Stress May Affect Your Smile

Understanding the Connection Between Anxiety and Oral Health: 4 Ways Stress Affects Your Smile

Our modern lifestyles often move at a fast pace, and it’s easy for stress and anxiety to slowly creep in until they’re just a normal part of your life. While you may already know how too much stress can impact your mind and body, it’s also common to overlook how it affects your oral health.

At Thurm Dental Group, we take a whole-person approach to wellness. Making sure that everyone understands the connections between mental health and their smile is important for achieving our goals. 

Now, let’s take a closer look at how your stress could be hurting your teeth and gums.

Dealing With Jaw Clenching and Teeth Grinding

Bruxism, or teeth grinding, is commonly linked to stress. Since this happens when you sleep, you might not even be aware of clenching your jaw. 

Grinding your teeth at night sets you up for the following oral health issues:

• Cracked or worn teeth
• TMJ disorders or jaw pain
• Face soreness or headaches

Waking up with a sore jaw is a sign that you might be grinding your pearly whites without knowing that it’s happening.

Seeing the Signs of Gum Disease and Inflammation

Gum disease is an infection in your mouth that progresses through several stages. Once stress takes its toll on your immune system, your risk for developing gum disease increases. If you have gingivitis or periodontitis, you might notice these symptoms:

• Gums that are swollen or bleeding
• Receding gums
• Loose teeth

As stress revs up your body’s inflammatory responses, existing gum issues can worsen. You might also develop gum problems for the first time. 

Struggling With Dry Mouth

Dry mouth is uncomfortable, and it can lead to major oral health issues. Stress could cause you to develop new oral health habits, such as mouth breathing, that decrease saliva flow. Additionally, some medications that you use to treat depression or anxiety can cause dry mouth.

A drier mouth creates the perfect environment for these issues to develop:

• Tooth decay
• Foul breath
• Bacterial growth

Neglecting Oral Hygiene

If everyone is honest, they’ll admit that brushing and flossing sometimes become low priorities when they’re under stress. If you start skipping your dental checkups or brushing your teeth, then lots of issues can occur.

Here are some of our best tips for maintaining oral health during stressful times:

• Follow your normal brushing and flossing routine
• Get a custom-fitted night guard for tooth grinding
• Hydrate to prevent dry mouth
• Eat a healthy diet with limited snacking
• Come see your dentist at our office for preventative care.

When you notice symptoms, like bleeding gums or sensitive teeth, these are signs that it’s time to schedule an exam at Thurm Dental Group. We’re here to make it easier to protect your smile no matter how much stress builds up.