Trouble Eating and Difficulty Chewing
Chewing and eating are two actions that most of us take for granted on a daily basis. We get hungry, and we eat – chewing food is simply a step in that process. These mechanical actions that we undertake repeatedly throughout the day, though, can become difficult or even impossible due a number of problems and conditions. If you find yourself suddenly having trouble chewing your food, swallowing, or eating in any other way, it’s important to be seen by a medical professional as soon as possible to determine the cause and look for a solution.
What causes difficulty in eating and chewing?
Although they seem like simple, routine actions, eating and chewing are actually complex mechanical processes including the teeth, soft tissues, jaw, and facial bones and muscles working carefully in concert. As such, any trouble in performing these actions is necessarily related to some element of one or more of those groups.
Broken, chipped, or otherwise damaged teeth can cause difficulty in eating and chewing simply by way of making it painful to do so. If you are experiencing tooth pain while biting down on food, it might be time to have your dentist do an evaluation for a possible break, crack, or cavity in one or more of your teeth.
Advancing gum disease such as periodontitis or advanced periodontitis can also cause painful gums that might make eating or chewing unpleasant. Although it is often invisible, gum disease can cause a whole list of problems, all of which you’ll want to avoid, so if any pain or tenderness in your gums is making eating or chewing unpleasant, you should report this to your dentist right away.
Difficulty eating and chewing can also be caused by bone and joint problems such as osteoarthritis and temporomandibular disorder (TMD or TMJ); it can also be the result of grinding or clenching your teeth, or even an untreated infection. Because such a wide variety of problems can cause difficulty chewing, it’s very important to be seen by a dentist and/or doctor to help determine the cause in your particular case.
How will my dentist diagnose my trouble eating and chewing?
Your dentist will first do a thorough examination to check the structural integrity of your teeth. She or he might also do X-rays to help see any damage to the teeth or gums that might be lurking unseen. The information that you provide about other symptoms you may be experiencing is also important, though, as these are details that can help differentiate one cause from another. Trouble eating and chewing in combination with headache and sore jaw, for example, might be an indication that you have been grinding your teeth at night, in which case a mouth guard might be required. A foul smell or taste in your mouth that developed at the same time might point to a developing infection in the teeth or gums and require antibiotics and perhaps a root canal. For this reason, it is important to reflect on any other symptoms you may have started to experience around the same time that your trouble eating and chewing began. Note them down and be ready to share this information with your dentist on the day or your appointment.