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jaw hurts when i drink alcohol

By Guest | 223 posts, last post
Dhruv Gupta, MD answered this Pain In The Jaw After Drinking Alcohol?
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Guest

i get this pain when i have many drinks in me..i feel as if im biting down and the muscles under my ear become unbearably painful..i notice that (i think) im biting down to hard because im drunk but when i loosen my jaw muscles up and become relaxed..the pain does not go away!! HELP!!
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lisawalmsley

I have always suffered the same kind of jaw pain, it seems to be beer that causes it (but that is probably because I usually drink beer, it seems to happen after the first or during the second pint then goes away if I have a third. It isn't related to eating beer. I also seem to suffer disproportional discomfort during the night, palpitations, quezyness (even after 2 small beers) and hangovers (sickness and headaches) like I used to get when I was younger if I'd drank way too much. I've often wondered if it's some kind of intolerance.
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guest

Ok, I have a similar problem, ie. drinking alcohol hurts my jaw when I eat. I find that it is ONLY when I eat starches (bread, beans, rice) that this problem occurs. I can eat a steak, a salad, fruits and veggies and drink alcohol and I'm just peachy, but if I eat starches and drink (within approx. 30 minutes of each other) it becomes painful... the more starch I eat, the more it hurts. Sometimes it sort of pops up, just a little bit, if I have a whole LOT of starch in a meal.

If you are having this reaction, test this to see if it is relevant. I'd be curious if those are linked with anyone else.
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Guest

This started happening with me last year. I don't drink too often, maybe a couple beers every few weeks. Its a pain at the jaw hinges likes they're being pinched. Someone said it earlier, its how your jaw feels after blowing up too many balloons.It doesn't happen everytime I drink, but when it does its within the first couple of sips. I think it doesn't matter if I've eaten or not..

I saw on another site, not sure which, that it can be caused by a magnesium deficiency. I had actually started taking a tablet everyday in preparation for new years eve, and I didn't have the problem drinking that night. Since then I haven't been taking them, and tonight the pain returned after a few gulps of my beer. If I continue drinking, the pain gets much worse.
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Guest

this also happens to me. but only when I eat food. my first two drinks cause a twinging/pain in my lower jaw below the ears. it happens with all kinds of alcohol including wine, beer, and liquor. if I drink alcohol without eating food, it rarely happens. but if I drink within about 30 min of eating food (either before or after), it always happens. I also asked my physician and he had no idea. I'm not allergic to sulfas ... that I am aware of. Have not had any allergic reactions to sulfa based antibiotics. There has to be a reason to this...anyone?
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OrlandoPRGuy

I have had this problem for a few year now. It's not always been a problem. It happens mostly when I drink wine. It doesn't matter whether white or red. It has also happened when I drink vodka and oj. I wasn't sure if it was the juice or the alcohol - but now I believe it's the alcohol. I read somewhere that a way to avoid it is to not drink water when I drink - which I usually have a glass of water in addition to the wine at dinner. But tonight it happened even without water. It began after I started drinking a second glass of Chardonay. I'm thinking that it has to have something to do with sulfites. It's very painful.
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Geno

I went to the doctor yesterday for a normal check up and asked him about this.  I have had this problem for many years, I'm 51, and it's really speratic.  It only happens about 2 or 3 times a year but when it happens, it's usually after the first or second beer and when it starts, I have to stop drinking at that point.  Usually after a few hours or the next day, it's gone.  My doctor didn't have any idea what this could be and told me to try to google it.  Thanks for all of your info and now I know I am not the only one that has this.
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liss190815

I believe in myself it is related to irritation of TMJ by alcohol, whether the sulfites or the alcohol or other factors in the wine or drinks,   the body reacts with irritation.

the tissues responding first to the irritation are the ones carrying chronic tension or inflammation that may not be usually noticed in daily life.  Many epople grind their teeth at night without being aware of it and have inflammation and trigger points in the TMJ. as someone else noted there are several cranial nerves running through that area that dislike irritation and cause severe pain when inflamed-- thus the connection to migraine and cluster headaches.

Introducing alcohol right next to tissues chronically inflamed is like dumping acid on a cut. the body is going to yell loudly.

it makes sene to me that people reacting (sensitive to)  to substances in the wine or drinks would have a bigger reaction than those having a generic irritation of tissues from alcohol, and those with both would feel "like a needle is going into the joint behind my jaw".

People without these sensitivity reactions would have no understanding, no empathy and no sympathy for those who do. it doesnt mean the experience isnt valid and it's important to hold ground and understand something that most western clinicians dont understand or practice. it is called biochemical individuality.

 

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mellestad

Vitamin C.  I swear to God.  Next time it happens eat a kids chewable vitamin or something, swish it around in your mouth.  **Instant relief**
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LB00203

wow, the vitamin c completely worked!
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Guest

yes i have been diagnosed with sulfa allergies in my youth. and i found that when i drink beer (mainly Sierra Nevada Pale Ale my favorite) occasionally i will get the pain in my jaw. I have also had some TMJ, years ago, that hurts in the same area but dosen't cause the tingling pain that beer sometimes does.
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Matthew G

This is perhaps the most useful information I've ever found on subject! I've searched Google and journal archives alike. Then I came across this question board. Previous findings on boards like this have been negative for answers... just more questions. Thanks! I'll have to look into the cytology of this
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Guest

i have the same problem! never have been able to figure out why my jaw twinges in pain when i drink certain wines and liquors. the sulfa correlation is interesting as i am allergic to sulfa drugs.
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Guest

Yes, my daughter never drinks wine with dinner because of the pain.
She isslergic to sulfatrim ( i think its a sulpha drug)
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Guest

Wow!  I have had this same experience for many years and asked my doctor who could not offer any explanation.  Just today decided to google it.  I will try the vitamin C trick and also test out the hypothesis about the connection with food. 

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