Mouth guards are used in contact sports to protect the mouth and teeth. Well-fitted mouth guards give players security in the knowledge that their teeth will be protected in the event that they take a hard blow to the head or mouth. Silicone mouth guards are relatively soft and easy to fit, but can be somewhat problematic for some individuals.
Nausea
A French dental study, published in 2001 in the journal "Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology," reported that some athletes feel nauseous as a result of using mouth guards while playing. Mouth guards are regularly made of silicone and acrylics, and those athletes who used the silicone mouth guards reported more problems with nausea than the acrylic mouth guard.
Breathing Difficulty
Players have reported breathing difficulties while wearing mouth guards while participating in sports. The difficulties were reported by athletes who wore both silicone and acrylic mouth guards, the Sports Dentistry Online website notes. The biggest incidence of breathing difficulties were reported later in sporting activities, when fatigue becomes an issue.
Oral Dryness
Oral dryness was reported by a majority of mouth guard users, the French researchers noted. The presence of a foreign body can tend to dry out the mouth. This makes the mouth prone to sores and other dry-mouth issues --- which occurred with both acrylic and silicone mouth guards.
Dental Injuries
Silicone mouth guards are soft, and athletes who tend to wear them usually develop a chewing sensation when they wear them over the course of a sporting event. The chewing action of the teeth can wear out the mouth guard, the French researchers noted, and lead to tears and rips in the mouth guard over time. As a result, a silicone mouth guard may make dental injuries more of a possibility for the user than the acrylic mouth guard.
Misconceptions
Many people think that if they wear a silicone mouth guard when they are playing competitive sports, they are automatically protecting their teeth. However, for the mouth guard to be effective, it must be thick enough to protect the teeth to endure a serious blow. According to Australian sports dentist Dr. Keith Hunter, the mouth guard must be 2 to 3 millimeters thick to be effective.
