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For all types of sports, athletes depend on mouthguards to protect their teeth. Whether you’re playing basketball or a high contact sport like football, a mouthguard is a good investment. However, many athletes choose standard mouthguards they can boil and bite to fit to their mouth, and while they work well if you’re on a budget, they don’t offer the same benefits as a custom mouthguard.

Here are some reasons a custom fit mouthguard provides you an advantage as an athlete and an individual looking to protect their teeth.

More Comfort

The problem with a mouthguard you form fit at home is that it might fit better than a standard guard you simply take off the shelf and wear, but it still may not fit as well as custom fit mouthguards that a dental professional can fit for you in an office.

Moreover, the process involved in creating a boil and bite mouthguard uses thermoplastic materials that may thin out, compromising the protection the mouthguard is designed to provide as you fit it to your teeth. A custom fit mouthguard doesn’t have the same problems.

Better Oxygen Flow

Maximizing your breathing is important to every athlete regardless if your sport requires endurance fitness like soccer or short bursts of energy like football. Wearing a mouthguard custom fit to your tooth structure will help you breathe better than a standard mouthguard or a boil and bite guard because it’s designed to protect your teeth, not constrict your activity.

Customized for the Sport

While many mouthguards protect the top teeth only, a custom fit mouthguard a dentist fits to your bite can also provide a guard for your lower teeth. Depending on the sport, it might be necessary to protect the lower and upper teeth. Additionally, if you have braces or other dental appliance on your lower teeth, a mouthguard on your lower jaw might be necessary.

A dental professional such as an orthodontist or dentist will be able to talk to you about the options and determine what’s best for your sport.

Can Work with Braces

Unlike boil and bite mouthguards, a custom fit mouthguard an orthodontist can fit to your individual mouth can be fitted for athletes with braces.

More Durable

Thermoplastic materials are great if you want a quick mouthguard that fits your teeth to a point, but because of the heating process the materials go through, the materials are not as strong or durable. A custom fit mouthguard made by a dental professional uses the highest quality materials that are strong and long-lasting, providing the best protection today’s technology can provide.

Athletes on the go who make an investment in a custom fitted mouthguard know the value of what they’re getting. Protect your teeth and worry less about – contact Dr. Frost today at (314) 567-1888 for your consultation.


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Athletes tend to be the picture of physical human perfection, but that is not always the case, especially when analyzing their oral health. There are multiple contributing factors to this, but here are just a few.

For starters, athletes at a high level who don’t participate in the major sports are less likely to have access to dental insurance plans. Athletes who train and compete in the fringe sports spend their time training and are not provided dental insurance by their employers. Additionally, if they are not a top level performer, they are typically not provided with health insurance by their sport’s governing body.

Next on the list of reasons is the amount of sugary sports drinks athletes consume over the course of training. It makes sense that drinks high in sugar and acid would erode an athlete’s teeth faster than water, and without access to proper dental care, athletes run a higher risk of damaging their teeth through the consumption of these sports drinks.

Lastly, there is a study recently released by Scandinavian researchers that points to an altogether different hypothesis. The researchers believe that the pH level of athletes’ saliva is to blame for their poor dental health. In the course of their study, the researchers found that athlete’s saliva was more alkaline than that of an average person. Additionally, the researchers noticed that athletes produce less saliva while they are training. This is troubling because there is a protein in saliva that aids in the prevention of tooth erosion. Finally, the researchers also noted that athletes were at a higher risk of tooth erosion than the average person as a result of their strenuous workout patterns.

Athlete or not, consuming acidic or sugary drinks is an issue for dental health. Be sure to brush twice a day and take proper care of your teeth. If you have any questions about the best dental practices—especially if you have braces or Invisalign—call Dr. Frost today at (314) 567-1888 or fill out our online form here. He would be happy to assist you with caring for your Invisalign or braces in Creve Coeur.


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The FIBA Basketball World Cup is currently underway and it looks like the United States is sure to take home yet another crown, but this is a dental blog so we’re here to talk about the goliath efforts of Dario Saric after having 6 of his teeth knocked out by Andres Nocioni. Not only did he come back into the game, but he buried a 3-pointer right after entering the game from having his dental health assessed.

Yes, Dario Saric is a terrific basketball player and he showed extreme grit in the game against Argentina, but he made a crucial error in judgement when he decided to not wear a mouth guard. Basketball is a non-contact sport, but there is bound to be accidents and an elbow flying errantly into your mouth is one of them. Some of the best in the game wear a mouthguard and there is a variety of styles to pick from for function and the always important ‘cool factor.’

When you’re playing sports your mouthguard is your last line of defense in protecting your teeth and it should always be on top of your list when getting ready for practice or the game. When picking your mouthguard you have the option of a standard mouthguard, which offers some basic protection for your chompers, but not as much as the other alternatives.

Next in terms of protection would be a mouthguard from the boil and bite variety. This mouthguard offers a great deal of protection, but usually fills your mouth with excess material that makes it difficult to communicate with your teammates.

Lastly, there is the custom mouthguard. This piece is very streamlined as it’s created to fit perfectly into your mouth. Not only is it great for sports where communication is relied on heavily, but with custom mouthguards you can create one that is as cool as your nerves when you’re shooting those game winning free-throws.

So have fun out there and don’t forget to protect those teeth of yours, because they’re the only ones you have. For any questions about mouthguards and how to protect your teeth better, contact Dr. Frost today at (314) 567-1888 for your consultation.


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