TMJ disease, which is considered a form of arthritis, can develop when the joints move out of alignment. When teeth are crooked or don't mesh, they cannot grind food smoothly. This misalignment puts extra pressure on the joints and, not surprisingly, many people with TMJ disease have difficulty eating or feel pain when chewing. The pain often radiates outward and can cause toothaches, tightness of the facial muscles, and neck and shoulder discomfort. According to Stephen B. Milam, D.D.S., Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center, San Antonio, it may be free radicals-the same hazardous molecules implicated in heart disease and cancer.
Free radicals are unbalanced molecules missing one electron out of a pair.
The are found in pollutants, such as cigarette smoke and smog, and are also produced as a consequence of normal food burning in the body. To restore the missing electron, free radicals steal electrons from other molecules. Antioxidant nutrients, such as vitamins E and C and others, readily donate electrons to quench free radicals, preventing or limiting their damage. Free radicals can also be produced at a normal levels, but a person's free radical scavenging potential may be diminished because of any number of reasons, such as poor diet or exposure to pollutants. According to Milam, free radicals can be generated in TMJ in several ways.