A MOUTHGUARD TO IMPROVE ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
Can Mouthguards Impact Athletic Performance?
We have found in our preliminary projects that we undertook with high school teams that Growth and Development of the jaws plays a significant role so results are limited if you are under 16 1/2 years old and even more limited younger than that!!!!!!!
If you are younger than 16 yo and you want a better mouthguards ask your Family Dentist to make you a
mouthguard or assist you at the office in the boil/bite technique to get you the best store bought fit.
We also found that the more serious the high school athlete was about preparing for their sport, putting the time in, strength and conditioning etc (such as the NCAA Division I - II - III recruited athletes) performed better. Also other athletes although not recruited but dedicated to putting the time in to prepare themselves for their sports season definitely tested better in our office.
To save you time from continuing on, if you already have a store or internet bought performance enhancing mouthguards, test it out according to their recommendations, if it works for you then no need to read on.
I have had to date much more experience with Field Hockey, Lacrosse and Ice Hockey players than with other sports.
Let us first address the Mouthguards we see high school players using primarily today. For protection purposes if your mouthguards stays in place and does not dislodge upon impact that is the key to prevention. I also find over the past few years that Boil/Bite Mouthguards are getting better. Protection is the priority!!!!!!
But I do not have "blinders" on when it comes to 99% of the mouthguards used in high school sports.
Most coaches, athletic trainers and fitness personel have an "aversion" to mouthguards for their high school athletes.
They see their players struggling with this "contraption" just to keep it in their mouths, let alone the problems it must create because the mouthguards don't fit, they have to find a way to bite on it to keep it from dislodging upon impact, they cut the "backs" off to have less mouthguard to deal with, they hang them out of their mouths because they can't make it work with it in their mouths, they can't wait to spit them out after play has stopped, they just chew them up til the mouthguard is all distorted and now it fits even worse then when they first put it in their mouth.
They can't hydrate with them in.
They can't talk to their teammates with them in.
They can't breathe properly with them in so It will "hasten their fatigue resistance" come the last 5-10 minutes of play at the end of the game when most games are won or lost.
The athletes perception becomes the reality to them that there is no way this "contraption - mouthguard" improves their athletic performance but you are mandated to wear it to protect your teeth in specific sports. That is why you rarely if ever see a mouthguard in high school basketball, soccer, baseball and softball where it is highly recommended but you have that option not to wear one.
How many high school athetes do you know that can say "This Mouthguard Makes Me Want To Wear It, Which Is A Big Difference Because The Other Ones Didn't".
However, they are required to wear them in Football, Field Hockey Ice Hockey and Lacrosse.
Let's understand why it is mandatory for these sports.
1. The primary reason to wear a mouthguard is to prevent Tooth injuries and Oro-Facial injuries. The reason is that approximately 80-90% of all sports injuries involve the upper four front teeth, your cosmetic zone.
2. A worst case scenario would be tooth avulsion. It could happen in the blink of an eye.
3. How do we prevent above:
4. 99% of mouthguards worn today are boil/bite store bought because they are less expensive.
Here are some examples of boil/bite mouthguards
5. Our custom fit pressure laminated mouthguards have:
a. Retentive fit
b. Protective fit
c. Balanced Occlusion
and
d. You can Breathe, Speak and Hydrate
e. Also we encourage feedback if you have any issues with any comfortablity, sore spots, speech, breathing we can adjust your mouthguard for you. We want "Compliance" but the reality is a mouthguard is bulkier in your mouth than playing just gritting your teeth together.
Well enough said about that.
Back to our subject matter.
A MOUTHGUARD TO IMPROVE ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE:
It takes months of preparation to prime an athlete for competition. It involves rigorous training, practice time, nutrition and hydration regime, strength and conditioning, physical therapy/PRI physical therapy especially as it relates to posture, balance, the influence of the muscle patterning and kinetic movement necessary for your sport. Your head coach and assistant coaches expertise, understanding what it takes to win and the studying of your opponent's strategies and how they might execute their game plan against you. The role of your certified athletic trainer with respect to preventive services, clinical evaluation of diagnosis, immediate treatment care, rehabilitation, recovery and reconditioning. "It truly takes a village" to get a team ready to compete.
You are now in your best shape for game-time execution to succeed.
Still with that said - Can it be improved upon?
If you have a malocclusion resulting in dysfunction related to the Teeth, TMJ and Muscles of Mastication then dysfunctional movement can shows up elsewhere in the body to affect full body movement.
Can mouthguards and oral mouthpieces that change the maxillo/mandibular jaw relation affect the body physiolology?
We utilize MORA Theory in the Form of a Type IV Mouthguard taking into consideration:
Your Age: It works best we find if you are at least 16 1/2 years old
Dental Occlusion
TMJ
Body Asymmetry
Cranio-Mandibular-Cervical Relationship as it relates to Posterior Rotation of the Cranium with resultant Forward Head Posture
A better Cranio-Mandibular-Cervical Vertebral Alignment means more effective muscle recruitment to improve strength, airway dynamics, flexibility, range of motion and balance.
So could putting a new mouthguard in your mouth be one more "Tool in your Toolbox" to give you an additional edge over your opponent?
Our goal is to improve upon what your coaches, athletic trainers and fitness personel have prepared you for your first game.
Most games are won or lost in the last 5-10 minutes of the last half, 5-10 minutes of the final period or the last 3 innings of the game.
We know the goal is to do your best to have a successful season first, to make the districts, to win a Central Mass Title and it all starts months before the season even begins. We know it takes a team approach that "village". But should mouthguards even be part of that role, even in sports where they are not mandatory.
You should look at your mouthguard as another piece of equipment, part of your uniform.
We want our mouthguards to make you "want" to wear it which is a big difference because with your prior mouthguards you didn't.
We found that athletes in our preliminary projects that we undertook with high school teams said:
Most replied there was a 1-3% improvement in play
A few replied there was a 3-5% improvment in play
No one said it had a negative effect
If you are an athlete wearing a moutrhguard that doesn't fit properly then you should reconsider getting a new mouthguard.
We prefer athletes bring their current mouthguards so that we can pre-test and post test to see if our device works better. We believe it makes no sense to purchase a new mouthguard if you do not need to. Why even consider changing from your current mouthguard if it is working best for you and your sport?
The goal of our custom fitted pressure laminted mouthguard is to before you leave the dental office to demonstrate some positive difference in your muscular and skeletal physiology.
To understand how a change in your jaw position can affect your body dynamics watch the following videos below.
What these videos below show is that:
1. The mouthguard as the only variable in the exercises is all that alters the athlete's ability to facilitate better these exercises.
2. The mouthguard as the only variable in the exercises is all that is changing the skeletal and muscular physiology of the athlete.
Proceed to watch the videos below:
If you are interested in more information please Click Here to e-mail us your information:
- Under appointment information select "Other" to describe the nature of your appointment include: childs name, your sport, your age (athletes should at least 16 1/2 yo) and we will get back to you.
THE FIRST 100 Worcester Telegram & Gazette MOUTHGUARDS are $99.00.
