Sleep Apnea Connected to Bruxism, Says Study
Researchers from the American College of Chest Physicians have found that nocturnal teeth grinding (bruxism), is prevalent among the estimated 18 million Americans that suffer from sleep apnea; a common sleep disorder.
Shyam Subramanian, MD, FCCP, from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX notes the connection between the two disorders, saying "The relationship between obstructive sleep apnea and sleep bruxism is usually related to an arousal response. The ending of an apneic event may be accompanied by a number of mouth phenomena, such as snoring, gasps, mumbles, and teeth grinding," adding "Men typically have more severe sleep apnea, and perhaps may have more arousal responses, which may explain the higher prevalence of teeth grinding in men. Besides, men characteristically tend to report more symptoms of sleep apnea than women, such as snoring, loud grunting, and witnessed apneas."
The link between sleep apnea and bruxism is related to many factors, such as high levels of anxiety and the use of caffeine. According to Dr. Subramanian "High levels of anxiety can lead to bruxism, and untreated sleep apnea is known to cause mood disturbances including depression and anxiety," adding "Daytime sleepiness from sleep apnea may cause a person to ingest caffeine, and this has also been associated with a high risk of bruxism."
Your best defense against both sleep apnea and bruxism is communicating with both your dentist and your doctor. Diagnosing sleep apnea involves participating in a sleep study. Diagnosing bruxism involves a complete examination from your dentist that looks at the wear patterns on your teeth by obtaining dental impressions that are used to fabricate diagnostic study models, and radiographs such as a cephalometric and/or panorex for the dentist to study.
If the symptoms of sleep apnea or the symptoms of bruxism sound familiar to you; contact both your dentist and your doctor. Early diagnosis is always highly regarded as being a part of a successful treatment plan.
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There really is a better way to deal with sleep apnea than CPAP or surgery. I spent 4 years studying sleep apnea and I believe that the root cause is due to the attenuation of the signal from the brain to the diaphragm muscles when the sleeper enters stage II sleep. This un-intended side-effect of the “reduction of muscle tonus” that occurs during this transition causes breathing to stop. Then, when the CO2 level gets too high, the sleeper makes a rapid inhalation DRAGGING the soft tissue into the airway, obstructing it and waking them up. The reduction of the signal from the brain is causing the problem.
So… I found this herbal combination product that INCREASES the signal and keeps the breathing going. This addresses the root cause so you don’t make a rapid inhalation and drag the sagging tissues into the airway. The stuff is called Sleep Apnea Relief and I buy it from Nature’s Rite. I’ve been using it for 4 years and it is really great. So you don’t have to use CPAP. I just wanted to let you know.
I experience both apnea and bruxism. I have used the herbal product for 2 nights and the only difference I’ve noticed is increased daytime drowsiness. 2010Jan07