Contact sports like hockey, football, basketball or soccer can get pretty rough so protecting your or your child’s most vulnerable areas, including the mouth, and protection for concussion are crucially important whether the damage is intentional or incidental. Even in many non-contact sports like biking or gymnastics, the potential for injury to the mouth is a real risk, and guarding against that particular harm may be prudent. The best way to protect the mouth is with a custom and professionally made and fitted mouth guard that is designed to distribute the shock of an impact to minimize damage to the teeth and reduce the force going to the skull and brain cavity. The mouth guard is a solid piece of protective gear, but not all mouth guards are created equal. In fact, there are some distinct advantages to a custom guard over generic store bought models. Here are some of those advantages.
Stability
A custom-fitted mouth guard is made when a dentist takes an impression of the patient’s teeth, and that impression is then used to mold a guard specifically tailored to an individual. Due to your unique specifications, the mouth guard will remain stable in the mouth, not prone to falling out or creating pain due to tightness like a generic mouth guard would thus, provide you with the best results of protection!
Breathability
Store-bought mouth guards are made to be ready-to-wear regardless of specific needs, and as a result, they tend be bulkier and ill-fitting – increasing proneness to gagging and making breathing difficult because they require the jaw to be shut in order to be held in place.
Fit and Protectiveness
These two things – fit and protectiveness – go hand in hand when it comes to mouth guards. The more comfortable and stable the guard is directly translates to better shock absorption on impact. If a mouth guard is loose or bulky its ability to take a hit will be greatly compromised. Good news, proper fit and maximum comfort adds up to providing the best possible tolerance in wearing mouth guards.
A professionally fit and made mouth guard is superior in every way to a store-bought model. And while it is more expensive, the reduction of risk to injury for everything from teeth damage to jaw fractures, to concussions or brain damage makes them well worth the additional cost. If you are looking for a custom mouth guard, or need professional advice on dental issues of any kind, contact our team today.
