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Chapter 23

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Your Jaw and Skull

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Here is where you get an understanding of the mechanics of your body e.g. how a filling that is too high in a tooth can upset the delicate balance of your bite which in turn may create symptoms elsewhere in your body.

A very important part in this balance is your Temporo-Mandibular-Joint (TMJ) which helps you move your jaw up and down.

The TMJ is no doubt affected by almost every other part of your body hence can cause all kinds of problems such as head ache, tooth ache, neck or shoulder pain and even back pain or hamstring problems, actually affecting your whole body.

If you have pain in the this joint or it doesn´t function as it should whether it´s due to muscles, tendons, ligaments, blood vessels or other associated tissues, this is called Temporo-Mandibular-Disorder or –Dysfunction.

The TMJ is the headquarter of the body´s balance mechanism, and if the jaw doesn´t close properly because of maloccluded teeth, the balance mechanism is forced to adapt.

Due to this constant stress the brain is pumping out lots of noradrenalin and serotonin which sensitizes the autonomic nervous system, making you vulnerable to any other stressors like bad diet or emotional problems hence depression could be linked to TMJ dysfunction.

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