What I didn't know about my Mouth Guard

What is a mouth guard? What can it protect from? What is its history? There are certain aspects about the mouth guard that we don’t know or don’t even bother asking or finding out about. For athletes who train in the fighting arts like boxing and most martial arts and in some contact sports such as rugby and American football; using or wearing the best mouth guard when sparring and playing are a must.

Let’s take a look at some aspects of this very simple protective equipment that some of us don’t know about. Learning a thing or two about the mouth guard would certainly help us choose the right type for us to use.

First off; what is a mouth guard? Every athlete knows that the mouth guard protects and is worn over the teeth to help prevent it from being knocked out when engaging in sports and activities that involve physical contact.

What can it protect from? What a lot of us don’t know is that a mouth guard more than just protects the teeth. It also helps hold the jaw together and distributes force evenly through the mouth thus lessening the chances of injury to the head such as concussions and a broken jaw.

The earliest mouth piece was invented and developed by a London dentist named Woolfe Krauze in 1890. The ones he made were boxing mouth guards intended to help protect the boxers who face the same problems when doing practice sparring sessions and fighting in the ring. They all risked having their teeth knocked out; breaking their jaw and being knocked out from hard blows from each exchange.

Design on the modern mouthguard was started in the 70’s by a Canadian pediatric dentist Dr. A.W.S. Wood. His goal was to create kids mouth guards that would prevent harm and injury to children’s teeth in hockey games.

Understanding the best mouth guard type for each individual is very important. Each person’s dental structure is unique therefore; not knowing which mouth piece to use could lead to further injury instead of giving you the protection you need. There are about 4 mouth guard types that are available today.

- Stock or ready made mouthguard:

These are the ones that are usually sold at most sporting goods stores and department stores. They are pre-formed and ready to wear. They are generally inexpensive but there are some downsides about it that we should know. There is virtually nothing that could be done to adjust its fit; is oftentimes bulky and provide little or no protection at all. Another downside to it is that it makes talking and breathing difficult. Because of these reasons; dentists DO NOT recommend its use.

- Boil and bite mouth guard:

This type of mouth protector can also be bought at most sporting goods stores; are also relatively inexpensive and they actually offer a better fit compared to ready made mouth guards. It is made from thermoplastic material and it got the name “boil and bite” since hot water is all you need to soften the material which is then placed in the mouth and shaped to fit comfortably around the teeth using finger and tongue pressure. This task does not look as easy as it seems though. It is recommended that you ask your dentist for assistance to get that perfect fit.

- Custom fitted mouth guard:

This dental mouth guards are individually designed and fitted as the name implies; can be obtained through your dentist and would be available in as little as a week. The first visit involves making an impression of your teeth which will be used as a mold and is sent to the dental laboratory where it will be carefully fabricated using special materials to suit your needs. Because of this, custom-made mouth guards are a lot more expensive than the other types. It’s pretty much worth the investment since it’s the best mouth guard that provides the highest level of comfort and protection.

These are high-end mouth guards that are recently being manufactured to enhance the athlete’s performance. It is specially designed in a way that it opens up the airways, prevents teeth-clenching and aligns and relaxes the jaw. An obvious benefit of being able to take in more air is having more oxygen to feed your working muscles. A relaxed jaw can decrease stress which in turn helps our body in functioning more efficiently.

This type of mouth piece is not only worn for contact sports. There are a growing number of athletes who use them that include cyclists, runners and body builders or weightlifters. It has been dubbed the newest tool in an athlete’s performance enhancement arsenal. They are made of light, flexible pieces of molded plastic that fit over the teeth and is much different from the bulky football mouth piece that we see football players’ use.

Talking about the price; well, it’s a little heavy on the budget compared to the regular ones we get off-the shelf. Performance mouth pieces can cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars and must be custom-fitted by a dentist.

Regardless of the type of mouth guard you choose; it is important that you realize that the level and quality of protection is dependent on the quality of the product that you are putting in your mouth. That being said; we should invest wisely on a product that would give us the highest level of comfort, protection and peace of mind.