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The Nightly Grind 夜夜磨牙

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How being stressed out can affect your teeth  探讨压力如何对牙齿造成影响

Cracked and worn-down teeth, jaw pain and headaches are getting the attention of dentists – and stress is at the root of the problem, they say.

牙齿碎裂磨损、颚痛和头痛等症状，开始引发牙医界的关注，据牙医师指出，压力其实正是元凶。

“We know that everybody’s under a lot of stress lately,” said Matthew Messina, a dentist and adviser for the American Dental Association.

「我们晓得，近来大家都感受到极大的压力，」牙医师马修．麦席纳指出，他也是「美国牙医协会」顾问。

The body reacts to stress – whether real or perceived – with a spurt of energy that enables a person to run or fight, Messina said. People who are under stress burn that excess energy off somewhere. Some do it at night by clenching or grinding their teeth.

麦席纳表示，人体对压力的反应──无论这压力是真实的，或是自己所想象出来的──是突然涌出莫大的能量，足以令人想用跑步或打架来发泄出来。因此，备受压力所苦的人，就会想把这股额外的能量透过某种管道来抒发出来，例如，有些人就会在夜间咬紧牙关或磨牙。

Pounds of pressure  千斤重担（译注：物理学上的压力，指单位面积上所受的力，而物理学上的压力往往以磅为单位来计算，即此处所用的pound[s]）

Clenching and grinding, also called “bruxism,” puts hundreds of pounds of pressure on tooth surfaces. Typically, chewing exerts 20 to 40 pounds on the teeth, but the pressure from grinding can be 250 pounds or more.

咬紧或摩擦牙齿也称为「磨牙」，会导致牙齿表面承受数百磅的压力。一般来说，咀嚼会对牙齿施加二十至四十磅的压力，但磨牙所造成的压力却高达二百五十磅以上。

Broken and chipped teeth are some of the results. And grinding can wear off enamel until the softer, dentin layer of the teeth is exposed. Teeth also can be rubbed flat.

而磨牙的结果就是，导致牙齿破碎、产生缺口。此外，磨牙还会渐渐把牙齿的珐琅质磨损掉，最后导致牙齿内质地更柔软的齿质层被暴露在外，此外，还可能导致牙齿被磨平。

Wear and tear on teeth isn’t the only result. “When you clench your teeth, you can get pain behind the eyes, ringing in the ears, sinus pain, neck pain, headaches – it can even trigger migraines,” said David Wright, a dentist who has training for the treatment of facial and joint pain.

不过，牙齿被磨损并不是唯一的副作用。「人们咬牙时，可能会导致眼睛后方疼痛或发生耳鸣，或是窦腔、颈部和头部疼痛不已──甚至还可能引发偏头痛，」牙医戴维．莱特表示，莱特接受过治疗脸部及关节疼痛的专业训练。

Breaking a clench-and-grind habit isn’t easy. Stress management techniques can help some patients. But there’s more to solving the problem than just telling a patient to relax and expecting everything to be all right, dentists say.

如果想改掉咬牙切齿的习惯，可不是件容易的事。压力管理技巧对部份患者来说，可能会蛮有帮助的，不过，据牙医师表示，若想一劳永逸地解决这个问题，并不光是叫患者放松、安慰他们一切总会雨过天晴，就能三两下解决的。

Not a cheap fix  所费不赀

Many patients try over-the-counter night guards that prevent teeth from snapping together and allow muscles to relax. But the one-size-fits-all devices often don’t work well, dentists say. What works better are custom-made appliances that fit the patient’s mouth.

很多患者都会试用那些无须医师处方、现成的牙齿咬合板，可以预防牙齿直接咬合在一起，并让肌肉能够放松下来。但牙医师指出，这类只有单一尺寸的现成用具，往往成效不彰，而真正按照患者齿型订做的矫正器，效果才会更好。

Preventing clenching and grinding might be worth the cost of a custom-made night guard. Insurance sometimes pays for guards that are prescribed for medical reasons, such as to prevent muscle pain, jaw pain, headaches and migraines.

虽然订制的牙齿咬合板并不便宜，但它预防咬牙和磨牙的功效，仍相当值回票价。有时保险会给付医师基于医疗理由而开处方的咬合板，例如为了要治疗患者的肌肉疼痛、颚痛、头痛或偏头痛等。

－by Barbara Anderson

单词发音

More Information

stress out 感到非常焦虑 to subject to or undergo extreme stress, as from working too much

stressed out（用作表语）紧张的，感到有压力的

worn-down [ˋworn͵daʊn] adj. 磨损不堪的

wear down 磨损; 损耗 to break down or exhaust by relentless pressure or resistance

at the root of 关键的根本…

spurt [spɝt] n. 突然一阵

burn something off 消耗；耗费 to get rid of something

clench [klɛntʃ] v. 咬紧

bruxism [ˋbrʌksɪzm] n.【医】磨牙

exert [ɪgˋzɝt] v. 运用，行使; 发挥；施加

chipped [tʃɪpt] adj. 有缺口的

wear off 磨损; 磨去 to grind or rub off something

enamel [ɪˋnæm!] n.（牙齿的）珐琅质，釉质

dentin [ˋdɛntɪn] n.【解】齿质；（牙齿的）象牙质

sinus [ˋsaɪnəs] n. 窦; 鼻窦

migraine [ˋmaɪgren] n.【医】偏头痛

joint [dʒɔɪnt] n.【解】关节

over-the-counter（药等）不用处方笺的

snap [snæp] v. 猛咬

one-size-fits-all 通用的；一体适用的

appliance [əˋplaɪəns] n. 装置，设备

单词发音

Vocabulary Focus

perceive [pɚˋsiv] v. 察觉；感知 to think of something in a particular way

wear and tear 损耗; 折磨 the damage that comes from ordinary use

trigger [ˋtrɪgɚ] v. 触发，引起[（+off）] to cause something bad to start

custom-made [ˋkʌstəm͵med] adj. 定制的; 订做的 something, such as an article of clothing, that is specially made for a particular buyer

Bruxism

How to Stop Grinding Your Teeth At Night