Due to the pressing economic crisis workers grind their teeth. Not as a sign of defiance, but literally. In fact there is a boom of new cases of bruxism with an exponential increase of the problems met by those who grind their teeth during sleep, the experts declare in an article published in the British “Guardian”.
There are those who find in the morning the unpleasant surprise of a broken molar or a chipped tooth, those who suffer from violent headaches or back pain, these are alarm bells about the problem. The new cases occur especially among managers and workers employed in the financial sector, who every day have to reckon with the anxiety of the recession. Sharif Khan, a specialist in dental implants, explains: “Mostly they are type A personalities, that is, people who are perfectionist, precise, mainly engaged in the business world”.
“In the last 18 months – Yann Maidment, a dentist in Edinburgh, testifies – I and two colleagues of mine have seen an increase in patients struggling with bruxism estimated to be about 10-20%. In most cases they are managers, people working in a bank and more generally in the financial world. There is so much anxiety tied to cuts: these new patients looking around find many people who have lost their jobs because of the crisis. This causes even more stress than these workers are used to bear.”
To confirm the increase of cases the British Dental Health Foundation has also seen, in recent months, an increase of toll free number calls from people dealing with the problem.
“The main reason of this intensification is to be found in the stress – as confirmed by the Foundation – dealing with the crisis and the difficulties on the job generates tension in the body. A tension that can occur even through grinding teeth.”
Corrective exercises, relaxation therapy and counseling to take on the causes at the base of bruxism are some of the remedies suggested by the Foundation helpline operators. In addition, to avoid teeth pay for the consequences, you can find on the market the so-called bite, that is a special equipment to keep in the mouth during the night, similar to those used by boxers in the ring. The cost is around € 300: the aim is to prevent the teeth “screech” each other, being damaged. At least those who produce these bites may benefit from the recession.
Source: Adnkronos Salute
