Keeping your jaw strong and healthy is probably not something you’re always mindful of. In fact, we often take our jaws for granted, using their strength to pry open packages and chomp away on tough treats, like beef jerky. But keeping our jaws healthy is important, especially as we age. Here are 4 tips to keep your jaw in tip top shape.

Tip # 1: Regularly practice jaw stretches

Every day, take a few minutes to stretch your jaw and jaw muscles. A few simple stretches will help keep the jaw joints and muscles lubricated and functioning properly.

According to the Migraine Research Foundation, migraines affect 38 million Americans and one billion people worldwide including men, women and children. It’s the third most common illness in the world and the sixth most disabling. In fact, every 10 seconds, someone in the United States visits the emergency room for head pain said Dr. David Buck, DDS, a neuromuscular dentist in Washington.

"Migraines are considered chronic when a patient experiences at least 15 a month over the course of three months," he said. "People who don’t suffer from these painful attacks have the tendency to brush them off as just bad headaches with little sympathy for the patient. But, 90 percent of migraine sufferers can’t function at all, let alone work, drive or socialize during a migraine."

With the recent news that actress Carrie Fisher died as a result of sleep apnea and other additional complications, this serious health condition is making headlines across the country. Though officials cannot conclusively determine the exact cause of death, it appears that sleep apnea likely played a role. If left untreated, sleep apnea is harmful to your health and can quickly become dangerous.

What is Sleep Apnea?
The Greek word "apnea" translates to "without breath. As such, sleep apnea is a structural problem characterized by repeated cessations or pauses in breathing during sleep. Typically, the airway collapses during deeper levels of sleep, compromising breathing and interrupting sleep. Millions of American suffer from the disorder, and it affects their everyday way of life, impacting work performance, personal relationships and daily functioning.

Sleep disorders are often evaluated and diagnosed by polysomnography (PSG), which measures brain activity, eye movement and heart rhythms during sleep, but a new type of technology designed by researchers out of Osaka University utilizes a smartphone to help diagnose sleep disorders. It uses machine learning via a smartphone to help determine if a patient is suffering from a sleep disorder.

Using Modern Technology to Diagnose Sleep Disorders
According to Osaka University Associate Professor Ken-ichi Fukui, PSGs are ineffective because they require a patient to be monitored outside of their natural sleeping environment, typically in a sleep lab or other medical facility. He believes that because "our environment influences how we sleep...we should not expect the same patterns sleeping at a hospital [versus] or sleeping at home."[1] This could be why so many people aren’t diagnosed with a sleep disorder, even though they really do have one.

 With the spring season in full swing, many people are experiencing a noticeable uptick in their allergy symptoms, and that’s especially true for those who suffer from sleep apnea. From watering eyes to excessive sneezing to itchy throats, spring time can be uncomfortable for allergy suffers, but it can become even more problematic for people living with sleep apnea. Dr. Buck specializes in treating sleep apnea patients, and he notices a significant increase in patients seeking treatment during the springtime months.According to Dr. Buck, sleep apnea is a structural problem where the airway collapses during deeper levels of sleep, compromising breathing and interrupting sleep. Springtime allergens can aggravate sleep apnea symptoms. When a patient suffers from congestion in the upper respiratory area, it limits the amount of breathing space, thereby impacting airflow and making breathing more labored and difficult. Here are a few tips to help you breathe a little easier during the spring season:

Continue taking your allergy medicine consistentlyBe proactive about promoting an open airway by taking your allergy medicine daily. Anything you can do to limit congestion and stuffiness will ultimately help you breathe better at night.

Sleep apnea can cause many health issues, and some of those can be life-threatening if the condition is not treated in a timely manner. Not only can the condition interrupt sleep, leaving you feeling tired and groggy, but it can lead to more serious health issues. Dr. Buck specializes in treating sleep apnea, and he fully understands how the condition can be harmful to the patient’s overall health if left untreated.

New research from the Association for the Study of Obesity suggests that being overweight, especially during childhood, could increase the risk of developing major depression later in life. The CDC states that "the percentage of children with obesity in the U.S. has more than tripled since the 1970s," and that "today, about one in five school-aged children (ages 6–19) has obesity."[1] And with those added pounds comes the added risk for developing depression later in life.

The CDC defines obesity as "having excess body fat [which is] measured using the body mass index, or BMI, a widely-used screening tool for measuring both overweight and obesity...Children at or above the 95th percentile have obesity."1 Previous studies have shown that people who are obese are a greater risk of developing depression, but the new study from the Association for the Study of Obesity closely examined the link between early-life obesity and depression risk. The study, which analyzed 889 participants, found "that being overweight at age 8 or 13 was associated with more than triple the risk of developing major depression at some point in their lives, whilst carrying excess weight over a lifetime (both as a child and as an adult) quadrupled the chance of developing depression compared to only being overweight as an adult."[2]   

A recent study out of King’s College in London confirms that dental phobia, also known as odontophobia, leads to an increased incidence of tooth decay and tooth loss. It’s estimated that roughly 30 to 40 million people avoid going to the dentist because of dental phobia. With so many people steering clear of the dentist because of this, these new findings aren’t surprising, but they’re still problematic.

The new study confirms what U.S. dentists have been saying for years: skipping the dentist is harmful to your oral health. The study "found people with dental phobia tend to experience a range of dental diseases which result from their avoidance of the dentist."[i] But it also suggests that dodging the dentist can affect your quality of life.

The trend of do-it-yourself braces is sweeping the country, but many dentists and orthodontists warn patients that taking matters into their own hands could be dangerous and cause long-term damage. A quick Google search unlocks a plethora of DIY tutorials and videos ranging from how to grow your own windowsill herb garden to how to turn your bike into a Pokémon Go machine to how to make your own braces. While people may feel DIY braces are a cheaper alternative to going to the orthodontist to be fitted for braces, it may end of costing more in the long run.

According to a recent survey from the American Association of Orthodontists, 13 percent of orthodontists see patients who have attempted DIY teeth straightening.2 While the process of DIY braces may sound easy and quick, they can ultimately do more harm than good.[1] Reports indicate people are using rubber bands around two front teeth to draw the teeth together, closing the gap. Medical professionals say this may sound simple enough, but because the rubber band could imbed itself into the gum leading to an infection, it’s much more dangerous than people think. Additionally, the rubber band can travel to the root of the tooth causing the tooth to fall out.

Many parents are told by their child’s dentist or orthodontist that correcting a misaligned bite or crooked teeth while their child doesn’t have their permanent teeth yet isn’t possible or effective. While putting braces on baby teeth isn’t a valid option, there are alternatives to correct jaw and teeth issues while your child is still young. In fact, Dr. Buck prefers to work with his tiniest patients sooner rather than later, and here’s why.

If your child has crooked teeth or a misaligned bite, leaving the issue untreated can lead to long-term issues such as sleep apnea or TMJ disorder. But the traditional orthodontic approach is to wait to treat the issue until the child’s permanent teeth have come in. According to Dr. Buck, while this approach may be easier, you miss significant growth opportunities that allow you to fully treat the issue in one shot.

New research suggests that children suffering from untreated obstructive sleep apnea show a significant reduction in gray matter of the brain. The study conducted by the University of Chicago Medical Center and published in the journal, Scientific Reports, conveys that "there is clear evidence of widespread neuronal damage or loss compared to the general population." [1] The findings of this recent study are especially troubling as it’s estimated that currently, three percent of children suffer from sleep apnea.

The University of Chicago Medical Center study analyzed 16 children with OSA and evaluated their sleep patterns overnight in its pediatric sleep laboratory. Children were administered neuro-cognitive testing and underwent brain scans with a non-invasive MRI. These results were compared with MRI images from nine healthy children of the same age, gender, ethnicity and weight, who did not suffer from sleep apnea.  

According to a new pilot study conducted at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, strawberries may help fight oral cancer in heavy smokers. April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month, so these findings come at an appropriate time. Presently, the Oral Cancer Foundation estimates that almost 50,000 Americans are diagnosed with oral cancer each year. With so many people being diagnosed annually, new preventative discoveries are especially crucial.

A 2016 study confirms that diet can directly impact the prevalence of migraines. The saying, "you are what you eat" could not be truer when discussing diet and migraines. According to the Migraine Research Foundation, migraines are a serious neurological disease affecting roughly 38 million Americans. It is the sixth most disabling illness in the world. Certain beverages, foods and food additives are known to trigger migraines and reducing or eliminating them completely can provide noticeable relief.

An improper bite could be the root of chronic headaches and migraines. People blame their headaches on many things including stress, lack of sleep and even dehydration. Yet most people don’t realize chronic headaches may be the result of a misaligned bite. When Dr. Buck sees a patient experiencing chronic headaches, he first examines their bite. What he frequently finds is a misaligned bite, or malocclusion, triggers the headaches.

Oral health offers both clues to the state of overall health and allows dentists to identify health issues before other medical providers. Because people typically visit their dentists twice a year, dentists are usually the first to notice health problems. The state of our oral health is also a sign for other serious medical issues.

A new study suggests that chronic sleep deprivation can negatively impact the immune system, leading to an increased incidence of illness. The study, conducted by the University of Washington Health Sciences/UW Medicine, confirms how the immune system is compromised when the body is not fully rested. Many factors can cause and contribute to sleep deprivation, so it is important to recognize the signs and risk factors to combat sleep deprivation early on.

A recent study conducted by Georgia State University found that women experienced higher incidences of chronic, inflammatory pain than men and that pain medications like morphine are thereby a less effective pain management tool. According to the Institute of Medicine, more than 100 million Americans suffer from some form of chronic pain, with women compromising the bulk of that. The American Chronic Pain Association defines chronic pain as an "ongoing or recurrent pain, lasting beyond the usual course of acute illness or injury or more than 3 to 6 months, and which adversely affects the individual’s well-being." [1] For many women, chronic pain can present in a variety of ways including fibromyalgia, arthritis, headaches and even temporomandibular joint disorder, more commonly known as TMJ. The Georgia State University Study sheds new light on how women are suffering substantially more than their male counterparts and why that just might be.

In the U.S., more than 10 million people suffer from temporomandibular joint disorder, more commonly known as TMJ, and most traditional treatment options can be invasive. TMJ-related pain can affect a patient’s day-to-day life. Patients frequently suffer from chronic headaches or migraines and jaw pain. Dr. Buck specializes in treating TMJ and uses a unique approach that patients are hard-pressed to find anywhere else. His methods are different and considerably less invasive than traditional treatments for TMJ, and that’s why he’s seeing more patients choosing to seek treatment at his office.

For people who suffer from chronic pain and headaches that are symptomatic of TMJ, realigning and correcting the bite can make all the difference. TMJ patients generally suffer from a range of symptoms including chronic headaches or migraines, jaw pain, and tenderness, difficulty chewing, facial pain and locking of the temporomandibular joints. Yet, what many people don’t realize about the disorder is that a misaligned bite is almost always the root cause. With over 15 years of experience in treating TMJ patients, Dr. Buck’s unique treatment focuses on realigning the bite to relieve TMJ-related pain and symptoms.

If you’re not getting a good night’s sleep and can’t figure out why, temporomandibular joint disorder, more commonly known as TMJ, may be to blame. TMJ is a serious condition that is characterized by pain in the jaw joint and the muscles controlling jaw movement that can impact jaw mobility, and unbeknownst to many Americans, it could be the source of their sleep loss.