Charlie’s posture?
We all know that good posture is important. Our parents reminded us every day and now we remind our children. Yet, many people don’t realize how posture affects their oral health. Yes, oral health!
Do you experience frequent headaches or pain in your lower jaw? Then, check your posture and consult your dentist about temporomandibular (“jaw joint”) disorder (TMD), as recommended by the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD).
So, how is poor posture connected to your jaw joint pain? Improper posture places the spine in a position that causes stress to the jaw joint. When people slouch or hunch over, the lower jaw shifts forward, causing the upper and lower teeth to not fit together properly, and the skull moves back on the spinal column. Go ahead, as a test, try to slouch this one time and you will feel the pressure on your joint.
If you keep doing this movement, you would put stress on your muscles, joints and bones. After a while, this would cause inflammation in your muscles and joints followed by pain, especially, when you open and close your mouth.
Moreover, bad posture often rearranges the position of the facial muscles and will cause the bumps and grooves on the upper and lower teeth. This will then cause your teeth not to fit properly together.
One solution to this problem is an oral appliance that can help align the teeth in a position that will reduce facial pain caused by poor posture. The appliance can also prevent future damage to your teeth.
But a better option is to practice good posture, as recommended by Core Performance, a site dedicated to fitness and overall wellness. Core Performance provides the following tips for sitting and standing straight:
- Keep your shoulder blades pulled back and down.
- Elevate your chest
- Keep your tummy drawn up and in
- If you’re standing with perfect posture, your ears should be in line with your shoulders, your hips with your knees, and your knees with your ankles.
- If you’re seated, there should be a line between your ears and hips.
If you currently feel any pain or have questions about your jaw joints, feel free to call us.
