Teeth Grinding, Clenching, and Nightguard

The fact is that the majority of the people grind or clench their teeth at night during sleep.  This is called bruxism and is extremely common.  However, teeth grinding or clenching at night can vary in intensity, frequency, and duration.  How do you know you are grinding or clenching at night during sleep?  There are a few questions that you can ask yourself.

• Do you get frequent headaches or migraines?
• Do you wake up in the morning with a sore jaw?
• Are your teeth overly senstive to hot or cold?
• Do you think your teeth are getting shorter?
• Are you chipping or breaking your teeth?
• Are your jaw joints clicking or in pain?

The best way to prevent damages to your teeth is with protection, and the best protection one can have is to wear a nightguard at night during sleep.  Your Bellevue Dentist Dr. Nelson Chen's favorite type of nightguard is called "NTI-tss" and it's the most comfortable type among the nightguards as it sits on only front 4 teeth.  Most people are good candidates for the NTI-tss nightguard.  This is what Dr. Nelson Chen personally uses for himself.