The jaw is an essential part of the body for eating and speaking, so when you have pain in this part of the body, your entire life feels thrown off. Various things can affect how your jaw feels, including teeth issues, stress, or something even more serious.
So, to help you get to the bottom of why your jaw hurts, here are some common causes and natural remedies to consider.
TMJ Disorder
TMJ, or temporomandibular joint disorder, occurs when the disc that separates the bones in the jaw start to malfunction. This disc can become misaligned and result in jaw pain, as well as a clicking or popping sensation when you open and close your mouth. Various things can cause a TMJ flare-up, including grinding the teeth, extra stress, teeth misalignment, and jaw injury.
Headaches
Certain types of headaches, such as cluster headaches, can make various parts of your head hurt, including the jaw. Cluster headaches are unique because they feature pain on one side of the head, so you could feel pain on just one side of your jaw during one of these headache episodes.
Sinus Pressure
If you have nasal congestion and yellow or green mucous coming out of your nose in addition to jaw pain, sinusitis may be to blame. This is due to inflammation in the nasal cavities, which is common when you have a cold or allergies. This cause of jaw pain is temporary and shouldn’t last more than about a week.
Teeth Problems
Issues with your teeth can also cause your jaw to hurt, such as if you have a cavity, abscessed tooth, or gum disease. Scheduling regular checkups with your dentist can address these problems early so that jaw pain doesn’t get worse.
Bruxism
If your teeth are misaligned or if you have a habit of grinding or clenching your teeth, this can also result in jaw pain. The condition is known as bruxism and often follows periods of emotional stress that you are feeling, especially at night.
Arthritis
Arthritis can affect bones and joints all throughout the body, including the jaw. Osteoarthritis leads to jaw pain when the bones start to wear away over time due to the disease. Rheumatoid arthritis and joint inflammation can affect the jaw bone too.
Rare Causes of Jaw Pain
While these are some of the most common reasons that your jaw might hurt, there are also rarer causes that may indicate a more serious medical condition. Trigeminal neuralgia and other types of neuropathic pain can cause jaw pain because of nerve damage and distorted pain signals. If your jaw pain is accompanied by shortness of breath and tightness in your chest, it could be the sign of a heart attack and require immediate medical care.
Natural Jaw Pain Relief
For most types of minor jaw pain, at-home treatment and natural remedies are useful to provide relief. You can alternate using heat and ice packs to relax tight jaw muscles with heat and then dull the pain with cold. Try gently massaging the jaw area with two fingers in the area where the ear meets the jaw joint.
When your jaw hurts, avoid eating tough foods or anything that requires opening your mouth wide. Reducing stress by exercising, doing yoga, or talking to someone you trust can also help with long-term, jaw pain management. You can support the health of all of the bones and joints in your body by taking all-natural supplements that make up for deficiencies in your diet, such as Seagate Shark Cartilage.
If these strategies aren’t enough to make you feel better, it might be time to discuss getting a custom-fitted mouth guard from your dentist or discussing medication and injection options.
Have you experienced jaw pain in the past? What helped to bring you relief?