Kids & Clenching

Kids & Clenching

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.

Isagenix Meal Shakes

Clinical research shows that Isagenix is better than the government healthy hearts weight loss diet by more than x9.

So important that kids and adults get 1.6g of protein per kilo of body weight. Leigh weighs 76kg so she needs 121 g of protein a day. Isagenix helps you get that amount, and all the super foods that you need for optimum health. Even great for the kids. Take the guilt away from not being able to get your kids to eat veggies and fruit. National survey of Childrens Health shows that in a week, 32% of kids did not eat fruit, 49% did not eat daily vegetable, 57% drank a sugar-sweetened beverage at least once that week. How did we let nutrition bar drop so low?

Talk to Leigh on how to tailor your lifestyle so you are all getting the protein, vitamins and minerals you need to keep off the fat, stop brain fog and fatigue.

Dr G Lyon in her Forever Strong has all the reserach to prove these claims and expand on the information.

Order or view the meal shakes, energy bars & hydrolyte packs here

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; your GP can refer for sleep studies, and ENT.

No referral is needed for dentists trained in paediatric sleep airway/dental arena, I recommend: Dr Lego at Dental Difference

Other therapies which help open up airways are:

  • Diet

    • See a nutritionist or natropath.

      Cows Milk is a tough subject. The science says there is no link with milk and an increase in mucus production.

      Most of the children I treat have been referred by a Pediatric ENT, and most of them will recommend coming off dairy for recurrent ear infections, jaw pain and increased clenching and grinding at night and skin rashes.

      As too will most of these client’s naturopath’s, nutritionists and nurse practitioners.

      Here is some great information:

      Cow’s milk protein is one of the most common causes of food allergy in children1

      Cow’s milk protein (dairy) allergy is not the same as having lactose intolerance

      Most children outgrow cow’s milk protein allergy between 3–5 years of age2

      Allergy symptoms can appear on the skin, in the gut and/or respiratory system

      Removing all dairy products, including cow’s milk, from their diet may help with initial management of the food allergy and should be done in consultation with their healthcare professional

      Finding appropriate substitutions for cow’s milk and dairy products is important to help your child to meet their energy and nutritional needs

      Reference: Milk - Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia (allergyfacts.org.au)

    • 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.

    • ‘White Diets’ - I constantly have referrals from paediatric ENT’s of kids who suffer sever ear pain, bleeding out of their ears (literally), constantly having to have grommets, and also have white diets (rice, chicken, burgers, bread, pasta), low iron, autistic/adhd/anxiety. Luckily the Austim Assoc has some great training for parents on how to feed your kids a balanced diet. It is no secret that their is a very strong gut/brain link, and these kids really need to have the best diet to reduce their triggers and symptoms.

      Healthy diet training for parents of children with ‘white diets’ click here

      Helpful places: www.autism.org.au

      perthkidshub.com.au

      www.littherapy.com.au

  • 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.

  • Throat muscle exercises - (Pharyngeal dilator exercises)

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).

Reference: www.aamsinfo.org Academy Of Applied Myofunctional Sciences

Healthy Sleep Patterns

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!