A Guide To Exercising Your Jaw With An Oral Appliance
Oral appliances are valuable tools for addressing dental issues like TMJ, bruxism, and sleep apnea. These appliances help align your bite correctly, preventing tension and stress in the jaw muscles and joints. Oral appliances can also be used to exercise and strengthen your jaw muscles. In this article, let’s discuss how to use oral appliance therapy in Newburyport, MA, to exercise your jaw for optimal oral health.
How to Use Oral Appliances Therapy to Exercise Your Jaw
- Initial Consultation
Before beginning any jaw exercises with oral appliances, it’s essential to consult your dentist first. The dentist will review your oral conditions and needs and, if necessary, recommend the best type of oral appliance therapy that suits your needs the best. It’s worth noting that some appliances may work better for specific issues than others. Our dentists can provide safe and effective treatment plans and guidance to resolve your dental concerns.
- Obtaining the Oral Appliance
Once your dentist has given the go-ahead, the next step is to obtain the oral appliance. While you can obtain generic oral appliances in an online store or drug store near you, these appliances are often bulky, of less quality, and might fit perfectly. Therefore, getting a custom-fit oral appliance from your dentist is essential. The dentist creates a custom appliance using impressions or scans of your teeth and jaw, providing an excellent fit and comfort.
- Proper Exercise Technique
Even with the right oral appliance, improper applications can cause unnecessary discomfort and issues. Our dentist can show you several jaw exercises and how to perform them to exercise your jaw effectively. These can include moving your jaw side-to-side, opening and closing your mouth, moving your jaw forward and backward, and more. Proper jaw exercises and techniques are essential for safe, comfortable, and effective results.
- Establish a Regular Exercise Routine
Like with most muscles in your body, your jaw needs regular exercises for effective and fast results. You can develop a simple daily or weekly routine that best suits your dental needs (consult your dentist). Be careful not to overdo it, as it could result in serious complications.
- Monitor Your Progress
Monitoring your results can help to determine whether the exercises are helpful. Be sure to share the results with your dentist. They can advise what you can add, change, or remove for optimal results.
- Maintain Good Oral Hygiene and Habits
Oral appliances can increase your risk of oral infections like gum disease and decay. Therefore, excellent oral hygiene is essential to prevent bacterial buildup in your appliances and mouth. This means cleaning your oral device after every use, brushing and flossing your teeth at least twice daily, and having routine dental checkups. Other tips include eating a healthy and balanced diet, staying hydrated, avoiding damaging habits like chewing nails, and avoiding tobacco and alcohol abuse.
Benefits of an Oral Appliance for Jaw Exercises
Exercising your jaw with an oral device comes with several benefits, including:
- Improved jaw strength. Like most muscles, working on jaw muscles significantly improves their strength and function. A strong jaw use allows for easy chewing, speaking, and other oral functions.
- Alleviates discomfort. Oral issues like bruxism and TMJ can cause significant pain or discomfort in the jaw, teeth, ears, neck, and head. Jaw exercises can help align your jaw and reduce tension and stress in the jaw muscles, reducing pain and other symptoms.
- Increased range of motion. Jaw exercises can help relax a stiff or locked jaw, increasing its range of motion. This allows for easy speaking, eating, and other oral functions.
- Prevent future complications. Jaw exercises help strengthen your jaw, align your bite, and resolve jaw problems. Thus, it can help prevent oral health issues like sleep apnea, bruxism, and TMJ. These issues can lead to secondary problems like jaw damage, tooth damage, and tooth loss.
Are you interested in oral appliance therapy near you?
Ready to align your bite and boost your jaw strength with oral appliance therapy? Contact Newburyport Family Dental to book your consultation today.