Nearly everyone knows that a regular habit of biting one's nails can cause their teeth to become crooked or even chipped. However, if you're lucky enough to avoid these problems, it might surprise you to learn that your potential troubles aren't over just yet. Biting your nails on a regular basis could end up leaving you with shorter-looking teeth. Here's why it happens and what you can do about it.
Pressure
The first thing you need to take into consideration is how much pressure is required to bite through a fingernail. If you've ever used a nail clipper, you've probably noticed that even with the help of the lever and blade of the clipper, it still takes considerable pressure to squeeze down hard enough to break through the nail. This is the same thing that happens when your teeth break through your nail, except it's even worse.
Most of your teeth aren't sharp by nature. Only the canine teeth are intended for sharply tearing through food. The rest are designed to help mince and grind up food, so chances are you're not biting your nails with sharp teeth. As a result, these blunt surfaces take damage over time. It starts out completely unnoticeable, but in the long run, you'll have some issues with it.
Long-Term Effects
Repeated use of your teeth to break your fingernails will eventually make them blunter. Think of it like water hitting rocks on the beach; eventually, with enough waves coming through, parts of the rocks get broken down into sand. While it's not as extreme a result for your teeth, biting your nails once a day will gradually start to wear away at the enamel coating on your teeth.
From there, your teeth will gradually become shorter as the softer substances underneath are worn away by the repeated biting action. You may end up looking in the mirror one day and realize that some of your teeth are shorter than their neighbors. This is likely because you gravitate to using the shorter teeth for your nail biting, while the others have been able to avoid the repeated trauma.
What To Do
If you think that your teeth have been shortened by biting your nails, you should see a dentist. The fact that your teeth have become shortened is leaving the more delicate components of your tooth at risk every time they come into contact with food, plaque, or bacteria.
Your dentist will examine your teeth to determine if there is indeed damage. If they find evidence that one or more of your teeth have become shortened, they'll recommend a deep cleaning and repair. Depending on the severity of your tooth damage, this repair may range from a simple filling to placing a crown over the tooth to protect it.
Breaking your nail-biting habit is the best thing you can do for yourself after seeing a dentist. If you're having a hard time doing this, talk to your dentist and ask for tips, as they see people with nail-biting damage all the time during exams.
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