If you feel overly stressed, the excess strain caused by high-stress levels can lead to health issues. But increased stress can also impact your oral health. You might not realize that habits that stem from stress may play a role in your smile’s appearance, too.
If you develop dental aesthetic concerns, you might suffer a blow to your confidence that can add to your stress. So, pay attention to your stress levels if you want to preserve your smile.
You can better protect the look and feel of your smile when you know what habits to look out for. So read on to find three stress-related behaviors that could lead to cosmetic dental damage in your smile if you are not careful.
Overconsumption of Beverages with Staining Agents
Stress can disrupt your sleep schedule. If you wake up feeling groggy, you might turn to a caffeinated beverage like coffee or tea to give you an energy boost to get you through your day. But tea and coffee get their dark color from natural substances called tannins.
Tannins from these drinks will absorb into your tooth enamel over time to leave dark stains on your smile. You cannot remove this dental discoloration with your usual oral hygiene regimen. Efforts to lower your chance of forming tooth stains, like sipping through a straw or diluting the beverage with milk, will not completely eliminate your risk.
Pay attention to your smile’s appearance as you drink beverages with staining agents to ensure you do not form discoloration on your teeth. If you do see dental stains, ask your dentist about teeth whitening solutions.
Grinding and Clenching Your Teeth
High stress levels will put strain on your body, including your mouth. Excess stress may make you exert more strain on your jaw, initiating or exacerbating a teeth grinding or clenching habit. The constant grating of the top row of teeth against the bottom teeth can create many problems for your teeth and jaw.
For instance, your durable teeth could suffer an injury if you continue to clench and grind your teeth. A small chip or crack in a tooth will disrupt the appearance of your smile. But this tooth breakage also creates a vulnerable spot in your dental structure that could increase your danger of decay and infections.
A dentist can amend minor amounts of tooth breakage through cosmetic dentistry. More severe tooth injuries might require restorative dental solutions to fix the issue. Do not delay treatment for a broken tooth because the injury will worsen over time.
Skipping Necessary Dental Work
When you feel stressed, you may feel tempted to skip some steps of your regular schedule in an attempt to find relief. However, you should never skip any part of your oral hygiene routine, including visiting your dentist for check-ups.
Consistent, thorough oral hygiene is crucial because it removes harmful plaque and other build-up from your teeth in a timely fashion. Otherwise, your teeth could weaken due to excess bacteria. And this makes your smile more vulnerable to surface stains as well as oral health issues.
Professional dental cleanings are necessary because your toothbrush and floss alone cannot get rid of all particles in your smile. Make sure you schedule your dental check-up as soon as you can.