Symptoms of Meth Use
Meth can impact the nervous system and cause a variety of other dangerous & irritating symptoms including:
- Shortness of breath
- Nausea & vomiting
- Hypothermia
- Diarrhea
- Irregular heartbeat
- High blood pressure
- Hallucinations
- Tremors and convulsions
- Brain damage
- Tooth decay
What’s Meth Mouth?
Meth use has always been known to have a strong connection to dental diseases. People commonly experience tooth decay after abusing methamphetamines, which can cause health problems and physical issues. The term “meth mouth” usually describes teeth that have experienced:
- Blackening
- Crumbling
- Staning
- Rotting
- Or breakage
While many individuals may know that using meth can cause oral imperfections, not as many people know how the symptom begins.
How Meth Damages Your Teeth
In addition to the above symptoms, meth use can cause some behaviors that could easily ruin your teeth:
Grinding – Known as Bruxism, meth use can cause a disease that occurs when people grind their teeth. When people are high off of meth, they ten to grind their teeth more heavily and frequently than normal.
Poor Dental Hygiene – Those who are high from doing meth probably don’t consider brushing their teeth as their top priority. Seeing as a high from meth can last about 12 hours, people who use the drug typically put brushing their teeth on the backburner.
Dry Mouth – The drug severely dries out the mouth, which will quickly cause teeth to rot
Poor Diet – Meth can also induce cravings to sugary food and drinks. These sugars, especially in soft drinks, can harm the teeth as well.
Fixing Meth Mouth
While there is no way to reverse what meth can do to your teeth, less serious cases can most likely be treated by a dental professional. However, some damage may be too severe for repair and may require the teeth to be pulled.
Ultimately, the only way to prevent meth mouth is to cure the addiction and abuse of methamphetamines.