Kids and Jaws/Grinding and Headaches
Clients have started asking me for advice on their children. The more they learn about their headaches and jaw pain, the more they notice their children have the same sort of symptoms.
Such as breathing issues or noisy breathing, constant allergies, tummy pain (which is the juvenile version of an adult headache), loud grinding at night in their sleep etc.
Disclaimer!;
I have discovered during my 20 + years of treating this condition information from other therapy fields. I am not an expert in these other fields, but I have consulted with therapists and this is the advice they have given to me. Make sure you double check with your appropriate therapist/doctor.
New Emerging Research;
OSD - obstructive sleep disorder;
otherwise known as restrictive airways, is one of the biggest contributors for excessive grinding and clenching at night.
So a referral to a sleep clinic and or ENT would be the first step. You will need a referral from your GP. With kids, there is not much they can do, and most professionals like to wait until the kids grow up a bit more, as they are too young for surgical options. If it is severe, they can prescribe a CPAP machine and or mandibular advancement splint, or they can consider removal of adenoids/tonsils, deviated septum repairs etc.
Moderate to mild restricted airways can lead to orthodontists or specialist dentists for assessment of palate expanders.
Indications for this are high shaped palates, noisy breathing, connective tissue/auto immune conditions which contribute to floppy airways.
For a more thorough examination and advice, who can refer for sleep studies and ENT I recommend Dr Lego at Dental Difference
Other therapies which help open up airways are;
Diet - see a nutritionist. Most will advise to greatly reduce or stop milk intake, a huge irritant to sinus membranes and can greatly enlarge adenoids later on in life with prolong usage.
To reduce inflammation in sinus's - garlic, horseradish and vit C in high dosages for a short time 2-4 weeks can help during seasonal flare ups. Check with your nutritionist/natropath for dosage.
SUGAR - is a big no no!!! It increases inflammation in the body which can contribute to increased grinding and aggravate other medical conditions or cause them. Bread and milk are products with huge amounts of sugar in them. So consider Sourdough as an option (fermented products are much healthier), and coconut milk as an alternative to cows milk.
Nutritionist I work with who are extremely good are; North of the River - Gen, e-genevieve.knutson@maylandswellness.com.au
and South of the River - Jacinata, e - jacinta@jacintaoconnor.com
Throat muscle exercises - (Pharyngeal dilator exercises). An ancient chant used by the Buddhist monks has been very effective for over 2600 years! Saying the following syllables very quickly, over and over again can help.
OM - AH - HUM
Start with 1 min continuously and build up to 10-15 min x2/day - do it in the car on the way to school!
Or talk to Sue Lin - Perth's Vocal Cord Physio - click here for more details
Tongue Tie - another emerging field. More and more research is showing that tongue tie can reduce air uptake into the lungs and upset gut health. If the baby has poor technique of latching onto the breast or bottle they can be swallowing air, causing reflux and colic. Poor feeding technique can then change the shape of the palate with growth (ie high arches occur to adapt, as the baby trys to increase the pressure to get the milk into their bodies). These adaptations of high palate shapes actually then decrease air uptake into the body.
It is advised for a healthier baby for; immunity, growth of good air passages and many other health advantages, to breast feed for at least 6 months if you can.
If your baby is showing signs of difficulty feeding/latching, fever, colic, reflux, irritation at sleep times, see your lactation consultant for an assessment of tongue tie. Sometimes it needs to be cut a few times as the baby grows, as they don't always cut enough the first time. Surgeons can do this procedure under anaesthetic, and some specialist dentists can do it in the chair with a laser (they will only treat toddlers).
Healthy sleep patterns - I can't recommend baby/toddler sleep consultants enough. Our wonderful Donna at bub2sleep works wonders - www.bub2sleep.com.au
Airway obstructions/blockers;
- Dummies / pacifiers - are not good for your childs air intake and can influence a change in their palate growth. Ask Donna at
bub2sleep for ideas on what else to use.
- thumbs /fingers / toys / blankets inside mouths!
Clients have started asking me for advice on their children. The more they learn about their headaches and jaw pain, the more they notice their children have the same sort of symptoms.
Such as breathing issues or noisy breathing, constant allergies, tummy pain (which is the juvenile version of an adult headache), loud grinding at night in their sleep etc.
Disclaimer!;
I have discovered during my 20 + years of treating this condition information from other therapy fields. I am not an expert in these other fields, but I have consulted with therapists and this is the advice they have given to me. Make sure you double check with your appropriate therapist/doctor.
New Emerging Research;
OSD - obstructive sleep disorder;
otherwise known as restrictive airways, is one of the biggest contributors for excessive grinding and clenching at night.
So a referral to a sleep clinic and or ENT would be the first step. You will need a referral from your GP. With kids, there is not much they can do, and most professionals like to wait until the kids grow up a bit more, as they are too young for surgical options. If it is severe, they can prescribe a CPAP machine and or mandibular advancement splint, or they can consider removal of adenoids/tonsils, deviated septum repairs etc.
Moderate to mild restricted airways can lead to orthodontists or specialist dentists for assessment of palate expanders.
Indications for this are high shaped palates, noisy breathing, connective tissue/auto immune conditions which contribute to floppy airways.
For a more thorough examination and advice, who can refer for sleep studies and ENT I recommend Dr Lego at Dental Difference
Other therapies which help open up airways are;
Diet - see a nutritionist. Most will advise to greatly reduce or stop milk intake, a huge irritant to sinus membranes and can greatly enlarge adenoids later on in life with prolong usage.
To reduce inflammation in sinus's - garlic, horseradish and vit C in high dosages for a short time 2-4 weeks can help during seasonal flare ups. Check with your nutritionist/natropath for dosage.
SUGAR - is a big no no!!! It increases inflammation in the body which can contribute to increased grinding and aggravate other medical conditions or cause them. Bread and milk are products with huge amounts of sugar in them. So consider Sourdough as an option (fermented products are much healthier), and coconut milk as an alternative to cows milk.
Nutritionist I work with who are extremely good are; North of the River - Gen, e-genevieve.knutson@maylandswellness.com.au
and South of the River - Jacinata, e - jacinta@jacintaoconnor.com
Throat muscle exercises - (Pharyngeal dilator exercises). An ancient chant used by the Buddhist monks has been very effective for over 2600 years! Saying the following syllables very quickly, over and over again can help.
OM - AH - HUM
Start with 1 min continuously and build up to 10-15 min x2/day - do it in the car on the way to school!
Or talk to Sue Lin - Perth's Vocal Cord Physio - click here for more details
Tongue Tie - another emerging field. More and more research is showing that tongue tie can reduce air uptake into the lungs and upset gut health. If the baby has poor technique of latching onto the breast or bottle they can be swallowing air, causing reflux and colic. Poor feeding technique can then change the shape of the palate with growth (ie high arches occur to adapt, as the baby trys to increase the pressure to get the milk into their bodies). These adaptations of high palate shapes actually then decrease air uptake into the body.
It is advised for a healthier baby for; immunity, growth of good air passages and many other health advantages, to breast feed for at least 6 months if you can.
If your baby is showing signs of difficulty feeding/latching, fever, colic, reflux, irritation at sleep times, see your lactation consultant for an assessment of tongue tie. Sometimes it needs to be cut a few times as the baby grows, as they don't always cut enough the first time. Surgeons can do this procedure under anaesthetic, and some specialist dentists can do it in the chair with a laser (they will only treat toddlers).
Healthy sleep patterns - I can't recommend baby/toddler sleep consultants enough. Our wonderful Donna at bub2sleep works wonders - www.bub2sleep.com.au
Airway obstructions/blockers;
- Dummies / pacifiers - are not good for your childs air intake and can influence a change in their palate growth. Ask Donna at
bub2sleep for ideas on what else to use.
- thumbs /fingers / toys / blankets inside mouths!