TMJ Blog

TMJ Soft Food Diet For Health

Temporomandibular joint disorders (also known as TMJ disorder or TMD) are a group of disorders that cause dysfunction and pain in the temporomandibular joints and jaw muscles that control jaw movement. If your temporomandibular joint is inflamed, injured or in pain, it can be difficult to open your mouth or chew your food, often because your jaw is locked. These types of jaw problems arising from TMJ disorder and bruxism, make essential activities like eating well, difficult.

Why Is My TMJ Acting Up?

TMJ disorder or TMD is a pain disorder that can be described as dull pain in the TMJ (jaw joint) and surrounding areas such as ears, neck and shoulders. TMJ pain can start with a small pain in the temple that occurs when yawning, but can lead to daily migraines, eating problems and permanent damage to the teeth. It can even affect speech and sleep. Researchers are now finding that sleep apnea is related to TMJ disorders.

TMJ Disorders: Do You Chew On One Side Of Your Mouth?

Chewing food on one side of your mouth is called habitual chewing side syndrome. One-sided chewing can be detrimental to your health leading to jaw problems including TMJ pain, TMJ headaches and TMJ ear pain. TMJ stands for temporomandibular joint. You have two of them on each side of our face. The TMJs connect the skull to the jawbone and are necessary for chewing, along with the surrounding muscles in the lower face. 

NATURAL TMJ PAIN RELIEF REMEDIES

Non-invasive and natural self-care practices are important for long term TMJ pain relief and stress reduction. Stress is a major cause of bruxism--teeth grinding and clenching—often occurring during sleep when one is unaware of these behaviors.  Waking up with jaw pain, neck pain and TMJ headaches are signs of bruxism and TMJ disorders, often attributed to emotional stress. Incorporating stress-reduction activities into your schedule will help diminish the effects of difficulties in daily life and improve negative emotions that may be the underlying cause of jaw problems.

How Does TJz Balm Help with TMJ?