Is Your Child Grinding Teeth at Night? A Holiday-Time Thing About Sleep & Stuffy Noses

I’ve been hearing this a lot:
“My kid wasn’t grinding before… and now suddenly they are. What changed?”

Honestly, during the holidays, the biggest change is breathing.
Not excitement. Not stress.
Just simple things like a stuffed-up nose, dry air, or sleeping in different places.

And when kids can’t breathe well through the nose while sleeping, their jaw shifts. Their body tries to open the airway a bit. And that jaw movement ends up sounding like grinding.

It’s more about sleep + airway than anything else.

Why it happens more around holidays

I’ll just say it directly.

– Kids get congested

• Cold weather, heaters, travel air, back-to-back colds… noses stay blocked longer.
  
• Blocked nose → mouth breathing → jaw moves → teeth grind.
  

– Travel sleep isn’t great

• New beds, car naps, hotel pillows, late nights.
  
• Kids don’t sleep as deeply when everything around them feels “different.”
  
• Grinding shows up more when sleep is lighter.

– Routines fall apart

• Bedtime shifts.
  
• Some nights they’re overtired, some nights they fall asleep too fast.
  
• When sleep isn’t steady, you notice the breathing issues more.

None of this is “bad,” it’s just what the season does to kids’ sleep.

Grinding is basically a message: “I’m trying to breathe better.”

• It’s the body adjusting things.
  
• A tiny repositioning of the jaw opens the airway a little.
  
• And while doing that, teeth rub.
• Kids don’t know they’re doing it.
  
• They don’t mean to do it.
  
• It’s just the body keeping them safe

Things that usually help

Nothing complicated:

• Using a humidifier at night (holiday air gets dry fast)
  
• Keeping their nose clear if possible (simple saline helps a lot)
  
• Letting them settle down before sleep, even a few quiet minutes
  
• Watching if they sleep with their mouth open
  
• Noticing snoring — snoring + grinding = airway working hard

And honestly, once the holidays settle and the nose clears, the grinding often slows down on its own.

When it’s worth checking with a dentist

If the grinding is constant, really loud, or paired with:

• snoring
  
• mouth breathing
  
• restless tossing
• worn-looking teeth

A pediatric dentist can take a quick look at how the airway and jaws are working during sleep. It’s usually simple to understand once you see the whole picture.

Holiday takeaway

The season brings more colds, more travel, more dry air, more broken routines.
Kids’ bodies feel all of it.
Grinding is usually just their body adjusting to breathe better during sleep.

It’s not misbehavior.
It’s not stress.
It’s not something they’re “doing wrong.”

It’s a little sign that their airway needs some extra help while they sleep — especially this time of year.