Yoga is a beautiful ancient Hindu art of practice that deals with the body, mind and spirit.Dentistry on the other hand is a field that deals with the practice and management of diseases of odontogenic in origin.
Now, how can these two completely vast and different subjects be connected?
Indeed, it can.
It may seem that yoga and dentistry have no connection whatsoever but as a matter of fact, this subject has been thoroughly researched and discussed by many researchers over the world for quite some time now. Papers have been published in articles and journals that boasts about the many benefits and attributes of practicing yoga in dentistry.
Many of the writings in these articles have proven that yoga not only benefits the dentist but the patient as well.
How does yoga benefit the dentist and the patient who seeks dental treatment?
Let’s start with the dentist.
If you recall visiting your dentist, when you walk into the dental surgery, the first thing that you would notice is the posture of your dentist. Most dentist have very poor posture. They appear to bend their back when working. They do not realise that they bend their back so much until they are so close to your mouth. But this is a very wrong posture to be in and can result in problems such as back ache, shoulder pain, neck stiffness and spine pain. Another common condition among dentists is the carpal tunnel syndrome whereby they have wrist pain due to the compression of the nerve that passes the wrist joint.
Stress is another huge problem for the dentist. Stress at work is common among the general population and the dentist is no difference. The dentist face challenges from their colleagues, bosses and patients.
I have met dentists who had to quit their jobs because of the occupational hazards and stress that they face at work.
On a more personal note, I do face stress at work. I have suffered back pain , shoulder pain and wrist pain for which I had undergone sessions of physiotherapy and splint placement for my wrist. But all this to no avail. However, when I found yoga 3 years ago, my back started getting better, my shoulders were not so painful anymore. Best of all, my wrist pain diminished completely. As a matter of fact, my wrists got stronger from practicing all those wrist balancing asanas.
Now, let’s talk about the benefits of yoga for the dental patient.
Going to see the dentist is feared by many. In fact, it can be one of the scariest appointment a person can experience. This causes a lot of stress to the patient. But when the dentist is a yogi, then he can instill some form of breathing techniques using the proper voice modulation to calm down his patients during dental treatment. This technique together with other behaviour management techniques has been shown to be effective in reducing anxiety among the dental patients.
Other than that, yoga is also effective is ensuring a person has better oral hygiene with reduced risk for dental caries and gum diseases. How is this possible, you may ask. If we recall , one of the principles of niyama is sauca. Sauca means cleanliness. This comprises both external and internal cleanliness. External cleanliness will comprise of bathing and keeping our body clean as well as brushing our teeth. So, if the yogi perseveres by brushing his teeth twice daily using a fluoridated toothpaste, it will mean that he will have good oral hygiene and sound teeth with healthy gums.
Another amazing benefit of yoga for the dental patient is that it helps in relieving pain at the jaw joint. The jaw joint is an area right in front of your ears that is responsible for mouth opening and closing. When there is stress on this delicate joint due to grinding or clenching the jaw, then the patient will have pain over this area. This will result in difficulty in eating, chewing, speaking, yawning and can eventually cause difficulty in opening and closing the mouth. A person usually grinds or clench their teeth consciously or unconsciously due to stress related factors. To treat this condition, the dentist would prescribe drugs and advice the patient on certain measures to relieve the jaw joint pain. If the dentist is also a yogi, then he would advocate teaching simple breathing techniques or pranayama to help in relieving stress. Facial yoga has been proven to be useful to help reduce pain at the jaw joint. It involves stimulating the facial muscles by using simple facial exercises and massage techniques.
Yoga also helps in ensuring an adequate level of saliva is present in our mouth at all times. Saliva is important in making sure that our oral cavity is well lubricated at an ideal pH. An acidic environment can result in many problems such as dental caries and gum diseases. If the mouth is dry, the patient may experience a burning sensation of the mouth and is at risk of fungal infection. They may also have difficulty in eating especially spicy food. Dry mouth is a very common condition among diabetics and patients who are on certain type of medications. This can severely interrupt the quality of life for these patients. Apart from prescribing drugs to stimulate saliva production, the yogi dentist can also advocate asanas and pranayama techniques that has been shown to increase or stimulate the production of saliva. Forward bending asanas and inversions are examples of yoga poses that can be done. Sheetali and Sheetkari pranayama are examples of yogic breathing techniques that can increase the production of saliva.
With strong affirmation, we can conclude that yoga has made a huge impact in the lives of dentists and dental patients worldwide and continues to do so. The dental community has benefited a great amount from the practice of yoga. This form of ancient art will continue to be shared and preached for the betterment of the dentist as well as the patient. So, if you want to avoid the dentist, practice yoga!
Leave a comment