Dental Gumshields v Normal ones

themacdaddy

Hi all,

I recently got a bad knock on the face in a Gaelic match. I want to get gumshields since I have had alot of dental work and surgery over the years.
I was hoping someone could tell me the difference between a normal gumshield and those in the local sport shop? Is it worth paying extra for the dental ones?

Thanks

Kinetic^

Get a dental one. They are a lot more comfortable as they're moulded to your mouth. I have 2, well worth the extra dollars.

themacdaddy

thanks mate much appreciated

BryanL

i've used shop ones in the past and they are handy as a spare to keep in your bag.But they are not as good as spread the force of an impact or at staying in your mouth.
Well made guards shouldn't impede your breathing but it's important to ask your dentist to make sure they are laminated and pressure formed on and excellent model of your mouth
Bryan

oh well

approx how much is one of these - son is 12 playing rugby and gaelic. he currently uses shop ones but he has perfect teeth and I guess I should probably get him a proper one at this stage.

AlanSparrowhawk

I've been playing rugby and doing boxing for years. I got a dental one only very recently. Before that I used the 3/5 euro cheap ones you find in sports shop. The reason why I got the dental one is because it's a very very very snug fit and gives that slight little performance boost because you're not struggling to get a breath in or speak or concerned with a gumshield moving about.

Having said that, my cheap boiling water job gumshields usually were very well moulded. I used to cut a bit off the end of the senior to make a better fit.

I think it's important to note that the difference in protection between the two types is quite minimal in my opinion. i mean if you get an elbow in the face or a punch in the mouth neither will really make much difference to whether the teeth are damaged or not, it will just depend on the blow. I've heard people say that the more tightly fitted gumshields even caused a bit of damage during their removal but I'm sure that would have happened anyway.

I hear a lot of people recommend the shockdoctor gumshields you can get in lifestyle and elverys. they seem a bit more substantial than the cheaper ones (they're about 15 euro).

Basically the other reason why I actually got the dental one is because I got a good deal. I got mine for about 45 euro when I've seen the exact same one for 80 and 150. If you're going to go down the dental route go directly to the dental technician and shop around. 100 euro for a childrens gumshield that may be lost in 2 weeks is a lot of money.

At the end of the day I'd recommend you get the shock doctor one.

oh well

thanks for that info AlanSparrowhawk - he is using Shockdoctor at moment so think i'll just stay with that one and see how much he plays this year. Still at junior underage so no major scrums/etc though I know he could still get a hit in the mouth anywhere.

Have to say find it hard to get him to wear it at gaelic though - its not compulsory so he hates being odd one out. Pity can't get coaches to insist on it, same as they do with the hurling helmets. rugby is very strict on it.

tommy1

Get a dental one from GuardKit mouthguards or Opro, much cheaper than your dentist!

sharkDawg

AlanSparrowhawk I don't know where your getting the €80 and €150 prices from. My dental gumshield cost €40, and I know of a few others that have paid the same from different dentists.

I think it's important to note that the difference in protection between the two types is quite minimal in my opinion. i mean if you get an elbow in the face or a punch in the mouth neither will really make much difference to whether the teeth are damaged or not, it will just depend on the blow.

:eek: I'm sorry but what you say here is crazy. Which gum shield do you think has a better chance of staying in place and absorbing the energy during the blow? The one that fits the mouth exactly or the one that has been boiled and bitten on for a few seconds????

oh well wrote: »

thanks for that info AlanSparrowhawk - he is using Shockdoctor at moment so think i'll just stay with that one and see how much he plays this year. Still at junior underage so no major scrums/etc though I know he could still get a hit in the mouth anywhere.

Have to say find it hard to get him to wear it at gaelic though - its not compulsory so he hates being odd one out. Pity can't get coaches to insist on it, same as they do with the hurling helmets. rugby is very strict on it.

Oh well, my advice would be to give your dentist a ring and see how much they are charging. Your son will be far more inclined to wear a comfortable snug fitting gumshield, and won't have to worry about it falling out or affecting his breathing, he won't even know he's wearing it after a while. Also he can choose which colours he wants on the gum shield e.g local gaa colours.

One other point, if you do get the dentist to do one, ask to keep the mold when they're done, that way if your son looses the gum shield you wont have to get the mold re-done i.e saving yourself some money

Heroditas

AlanSparrowhawk wrote: »

I hear a lot of people recommend the shockdoctor gumshields you can get in lifestyle and elverys. they seem a bit more substantial than the cheaper ones (they're about 15 euro).
[...]

At the end of the day I'd recommend you get the shock doctor one.

I use the shock doctor one and it's excellent. Very sturdy and I don't gag half as much as I used to when wearing other makes of gumshield.