Reducing severe diurnal bruxism in two profoundly retarded females.

Two women with profound intellectual disability ground their teeth all day. The authors wanted to stop the grinding without drugs or restraints.

Each time a woman ground her teeth, staff touched her cheek with an ice cube for two seconds. The team tracked jaw movements across the day.

The quick ice touch cut grinding by 94–95 percent while it was in place. When staff later watched without ice, grinding stayed down by about half.

The effect showed up fast and lasted the whole study.

Thakore et al. (2024) and Luiselli (1989) later swapped ice for soft gear. They added brief response blocking and still got near-zero stereotypy, showing the idea keeps working when you trade cold for comfort.

Taras et al. (1993) used a cool water mist instead of ice and saw similar drops in self-injury. All three studies tell the same story: a mild, quick sensory consequence can safely curb severe behavior.

Cannella et al. (2006) reviewed 23 papers on hand mouthing and found most cases were fed by the feeling itself, not outside rewards. Bruxism fits that rule, so an immediate sensory interruptor like ice makes sense.

You now have a low-cost, low-risk tool for loud, tooth-damaging bruxism. No meds, no helmets, no loud devices. Try a two-second ice touch each time you see or hear grinding. Track for one week. If it works, teach every staff member the same momentary cue and keep data to be sure the gains stick.