Why does a child gnash his teeth in a dream?

If the parents hear their teeth gnashing during sleep, it is almost always alarming and apprehensive. However, this condition, called doctors bruxism, is quite common in preschoolers, for example, in children aged 2 years.

Gnash occurs due to involuntary contraction of the chewing muscles, when the child's jaws shrink uncontrollably. It is more often observed at night, and can appear in children, for example, at the age of 4, and in adults. Most cases of squeak teeth are noted in the male. In children, such squeaks, as a rule, are short-term (lasting about 10 seconds).

In the next video you can learn a little more about bruxism in children and its causes.

One of the most frequent factors that provoke the creaking of teeth in a dream is psychological problems. These include:

• Stressful situations, for example, adaptation to kindergarten or to school stress, quarrels between parents, severe weaning, addition to the family, relocation and other situations that cause negative stress. Because of them, the baby becomes more excitable and irritable or, on the contrary, whiny and depressed. This is what causes the night creaks of teeth.
• Overwork. Excessive physical activity and considerable study load can lead to it. As a result, the child is moody, tired, weeping, irritable, sleepy, feels depressed, often sad, sleeps worse.
• Lack of sleep, which can cause nightmares, disrupted day regimen, medication, irritability of the nervous system, nocturnal enuresis, frequent waking up or trouble falling asleep. If a child is disturbed before bedtime due to long watching television or computer games, as well as because of punishment, reprimands or quarrels, this often manifests itself at night with the creak of teeth.

In more than half of young children, physical factors that are detected by dentists are the cause of the appearance of bruxism:

• Bite problems (the jaws do not fully close, one of them moves forward, there are gaps between the teeth). If the bite in the child is broken, the baby will try to place the teeth more conveniently and, because of this, to creak because of uncomfortable sensations.
• Problems with the structure of the jaw joints. They may be congenital (anomalies of the development of the joints) or caused by inflammation. In any case, this requires treatment by a dentist.
• Teething at an early age. Because of the sensation of discomfort and itching, the babies rub the cutting teeth to each other. As a rule, in such a situation, bruxism disappears as soon as the teeth erupt and stop bothering the little one.
• Changing milk teeth in older children. This is a common cause of rattling in a dream in children 7-8 years old.
• Too small load on the gums due to insufficient amount of solid food in the kids menu.

It is noted that in the presence of bruxism in childhood with grandparents or parents of a child, the likelihood of teeth squeaking in a dream in a baby increases. At the same time, with genetic predisposition, bruxism appears more often in boys who are 3 years old.

A baby can grind its teeth when a severe runny nose, otitis or sinusitis appears. Also quite often, adenoiditis and polyposis in the nose are manifested with a screech in a dream. With such diseases, the baby is blocked by a stuffy nose and discomfort in the ears or throat. As soon as the symptoms of the disease disappear, bruxism also disappears, not arising more in a healthy toddler.

It was noted that insufficient intake of vitamins of group B, magnesium, calcium and some other elements can provoke the appearance of cramps in the muscles, the result of which becomes a periodic gnashing of teeth.

The famous doctor always seeks to warn parents not to bite their teeth in their sleep with worms, as is customary in the older generation. Komarovsky emphasizes that medical studies have not confirmed such a connection, so there is no need to immediately give the child with the creak of teeth at night antihelminthic drugs.

If the cause of the rattle is an impaired bite, a constant gnashing of teeth will erase the enamel of the teeth. As a result, the teeth become more sensitive, loosened and destroyed. They are often affected by caries, and the tissues around the tooth become inflamed. As a result, the child complains of pain in the jaws, teeth and headaches. In addition, the formation of the facial skull may be impaired.

If teething, catarrhal diseases, or weaning have become the factors that have provoked bruxism, no special measures are needed against teeth squeak in a dream. Everything is normalized as soon as the disease or discomfort has passed, and when weaned, as soon as the crumb gets used to the changes. Consultation of a neurologist and treatment is necessary only in a situation where bruxism strongly disrupts the general condition of the crumbs and lasts longer than a month.

In case of bruxism caused by sleep disorders, the child is advised to be taken to a somnologist, and in situations where the rattle appears due to psychological problems, it is important to identify these problems and eliminate them. A neurologist may prescribe a baby valerian, glycine, aromatherapy, sedative herbs, vitamin complexes.

If the reasons for the appearance of a rattle in a dream are related to dentistry, the child should visit a doctor who will recommend:

• Put on the mouthguard teeth. So called special lining, preventing erasing enamel when gnashing.
• Use teethers if a problem occurs during teething.
• Treat the gums with an anesthetic gel and rinse your mouth with herbal decoction if your gums are inflamed.

To prevent teeth from gnashing during sleep, it is advised to protect the baby from overstrain and stress, as well as to normalize the daily routine and nutrition of the child. Parents are important:

• Ensure that the child respects rest and sleep, both day and night.
• Provide your child a balanced diet.
• Remove from the menu of the child's food, which contains a large number of chemical additives.
• Include in the diet of solid foods.
• Allow the child to eat, play actively and watch TV no later than two hours before bedtime.
• Exclude quarrels and conflicts in the family.
• Show to the child more affection and attention.
• Do regularly soothing baths with herbal decoctions.
• Read books to your child, talk more.
• Do not ignore the baby's requests and do not shout at him.

Most often, bruxism occurs in children, but adults can face this problem. See the following videos for details.