Dentists have known for some time now that stress is a big contributing factor to tooth grinding, or bruxism. As social anxiety generally causes stress in social situations, it can naturally be concluded that people struggling with social anxiety are more prone to bruxism.
To further understand this relationship, a group at Tel Aviv University studied a group of seventy-five participants. These participants were men and women in their early thirties, forty of which experience social phobia, about half of which were on medication for their problem. These participants underwent an oral and psychiatry examination. Researchers found that there was moderate-to-severe wear on the teeth of 42.1% of the group with social phobia, and only 28.6% of the control group. Meanwhile, 32.5% of the first group exhibited jaw play, as opposed to only 12.1% of the control group. Waking bruxism was observed in 42.5% of the first group, and a mere 3% of the control group.
Indeed, it would appear that social interaction is a major trigger for bruxism in people struggling with social anxiety. To find out more about how you can protect your teeth and overcome tooth grinding, talk to Meadow Creek Dental in Issaquah.
