Finding the best kids mouth guard can protect your child’s teeth, especially if they grind them. Bruxism, the unconscious grinding or clenching of teeth, is a common condition that affects children, with reports indicating that 35% of children experience it at some point.
Getting the right mouth guards would be prudent to safeguard their young smiles.
This article helps you to get the right solution for your child by covering important aspects, including:
- Highlighting why a kids mouth guard is important for bruxism;
- How to choose the best mouth guard for your kids;
- Exploring the top 5 mouth guards for children with bruxism.
Importance of Mouth Guards for Bruxism
Bruxism often occurs during sleep or when the child undergoes periods of stress.
Experts claim occasional bruxism may not harm the child’s health, as most outgrow the condition with time. However, chronic or severe grinding may require intervention to prevent it from causing further damage. This is where kids mouth guards for bruxism comes in.
Mouth guards act as a protective barrier between the lower and upper teeth. They absorb the forces that are generated during teeth grinding.
There are many benefits associated with mouth guards for children with bruxism, including:
Protecting the Teeth
One of the main purposes of mouth guards is to protect teeth from the damaging effects of severe grinding. Teeth clenching exerts excessive pressure on the teeth, which might lead to oral conditions, such as chipped enamel or even tooth loss.
Mouth guards create a cushioning effect by absorbing the forces generated during teeth grinding. In turn, this reduces the risk of dental damage.
Preventing Jaw Pain
Bruxism is known to cause pain and discomfort in the jaw. If you have a child with the condition, they will often have sore jaws and headaches. Some of them will even display fatigue in their facial muscles.
Mouth guards alleviate these symptoms through the provision of an alternative soft and comfortable surface for your children to bite on. Moreover, these protective devices distribute pressure evenly, reducing strain on the jaw joints.
Improving Sleep Quality
Children with bruxism experience poor sleep quality. This leads to disrupted sleep patterns which are not healthy for them. Furthermore, the grinding noises might disrupt the sleep quality of other family members.
Kids mouth guards for bruxism enable them to reduce the amount of noise generated from teeth grinding, creating a quieter environment for them to sleep better.
Here are some of the best mouth guards for snoring that you may consider if your children don’t necessarily experience bruxism.
Preventing Long-term Damage
Bruxism can have long-term consequences for the child’s oral health if not treated promptly. Severe grinding can easily wear down the tooth enamel. This increases the risk of other oral conditions, such as cavities and tooth sensitivity.
Moreover, chronic teeth clenching can be the gateway for gum recession and contributes to the development of temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ). A good mouth guard for bruxism prevents these potential long-term damages and preserves the health of your child’s teeth and supporting structures.
If your child faces TMJ issues, you can get one of these TMJ mouth guards instead.
Criteria for Selecting Mouth Guards for Children
There are different types of mouth guards that your children can find helpful based on their unique needs. When searching for the best kids mouth guards for bruxism, you should consider several factors that ensure the child’s safety, comfort, and effectiveness.
Here are a few crucial considerations to make when getting mouth guards for children with bruxism:
Size and fit
Mouth guards should fit the child’s mouth comfortably. Before settling on the ideal product, ensure it is made explicitly for children, as these devices often have a better fit and offer more protection.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) recognizes the importance of mouth guards for bruxism and recommends using custom-fitted mouth guards for optimal protection.
Ensure that the mouth guards you go for are adjustable or customizable to fit the child’s mouth more comfortably.
Material
Ensure the mouth guards you go for are made of safe and durable materials. Look for those made from non-toxic materials and BPA-free to ensure your child’s safety while minimizing the risk of potential allergic reactions.
Moreover, go for products made from soft and flexible materials, as they could offer better comfort during teeth clenching.
Comfort
Your child’s comfort should be a determining factor when choosing the best kids mouth guard for bruxism. It should not cause any kind of irritation when worn.
Mouth guards with a slim profile are ideal as they allow for the natural movement of lips and the tongue.
Ease of use
Using mouth guards should not be a complicated process, making it even easier for the children to wear them on their own. Moreover, a good mouth guard should not hinder a child’s breathing or speech.
Durability
Like with any other dental device, it is important to go for one that is highly durable. Regular grinding and clenching can wear off mouth guards made out of poor quality. This is why you should go for one resilient enough to maintain its integrity over time.
Ease of maintenance
Select a mouth guard that is easy to clean and maintain. Good mouth guards may come with a storage case and can be easily rinsed or soaked in an antimicrobial solution.
Top 5 Mouth Guards for Bruxism in Children
Based on the factors above and customer reviews, here are the top mouth guards for kids with bruxism:
Pro Teeth Hybrid Night Guard
The Pro Teeth Hybrid Night Guard is an excellent choice for people with moderate bruxism. It is one of the most comfortable mouth guards with a very soft interior and a hard exterior.
It is also an easy-to-use mouth guard that can be custom-made for the user. You simply have to take impressions of your mouth, and the company will use them to create your own unique mouth guard.
Here’s our extensive Pro Teeth Guard review for a more detailed overview.
Price: $169.99 – $209.99
Key Features:
- 60-day 110% money-back satisfaction guarantee
- Custom-made, professional quality
- Customizable fit based on dental impressions.
- Made from high-quality materials.
- Effective cushioning.
- Requires a dental impression kit to be taken, making the procedure for getting it lengthy and more costly.
JS Dental Lab Hybrid Guard
The JS Dental nightguard combines a rigid exterior with a soft interior, making it ideal for people with teeth clenching and grinding issues.
The product is made from meticulously durable, FDA-approved dual-laminate material, making it one of the most long-lasting mouth guards. Moreover, the brand’s custom fit ensures your child sleeps comfortably without any irritations.
Once you purchase the JS Dental nightguard, you will first receive an impression. You can take impressions of your child’s teeth and send it back to the company to create a custom-made mouth guard to address your child’s bruxism.
Price: $145
Key features:
- $1 risk-free trial
- Crafted to last
- Ultimate customization options
- Can be used on the upper or lower set of teeth, depending on one’s preference.
- Slim profile for more comfort.
- Easy to mold and customize.
- It may require additional re-molding even after receiving the custom-made mouth guards.
Sporting Smiles Teeth Grinding Mouth Guard
Sporting Smiles offers relief to children that experience severe teeth grinding. It has numerous models that vary in firmness and comfort features, so it can be easy selecting the best one based on your child’s level of bruxism.
The Flexible Super Hard model is made with a 3 mm thick EVA plastic, which is quite dense but flexible. This particular model is for heavy grinders. However, if your child does not grind their teeth heavily, you may opt for more comfortable, softer models.
Like the other top mouth guard brands on this list, this product is highly customizable, and users only have to take impressions of their teeth and send them back to the company to manufacture the custom mouth guards.
Price: $90 – $105
Key features:
- Developed for superior fit and protection
- Sleek and compact tight fit for the ultimate comfort
- Best for heavy grinders.
- Custom-fit design.
- Made from a highly durable but flexible material.
- Multi-layered construction for impact absorption.
- Taking impressions might be challenging for some, with longer waiting periods and a higher price point.
The Clear Club Multi-Color Guard
Most mouth guards for children with bruxism may not be ideal for those who wear braces. However, the Clear Club Multi-Colored Guard changes that. This is one of the best kids mouth guards that is braces-friendly.
The product has up to three thickness levels to address various severity levels of bruxism. Moreover, as orthodontic treatment shifts the positions of teeth regularly, you will also need a mouthguard that is able to keep up with these changes.
This means you will have to buy a new mouth guard to match the shift in the position of the teeth — which can be quite expensive.
However, the Clear Club Multi-Colored Guard makes has a subscription model that enables you to get new mouth guards to protect your child from the effects of bruxism, after every few months, at a fraction of the cost for a new mouth guard.
Here is our list of the best night guards with braces that you can also consider.
Price: $136 – $170
Key features:
- Slim and comfortable design
- Supports orthodontic treatment
- Ideal for children with braces.
- Durable design.
- A subscription plan saves you money.
- Multi-colored making it more kid-friendly.
- Fewer thickness options.
Oral Mart Youth Mouth Guard for Kids
The Oral Mart Youth Mouth Guard for Kids is often advertised as one of the top mouthguards for sports. However, it is also excellent in other situations and is one of the best NTI night guards for bruxism.
The product has a simple construction that proves quite efficient. It is a dual-layer product, with an inner layer gel that makes it easy to customize to the child’s mouth.
This product comes with the option to choose from 11 colors, making it an exciting choice for kids.
Price: $12.99 – $15.99
Key features:
- Different colors to appease younger children
- Made from superior quality materials
- Easily customizable.
- Protective case included.
- Sturdy but comfortable construction.
- Not ideal for kids with braces.
Best Mouth Guards for Bruxism Video
Here’s a quick video courtesy of Sleep Foundation that delves deeper into some of the best mouth guards for bruxism. In the video, the hosts show us what these products look like and how they are beneficial.
While the video discusses two other brands not mentioned in this post, we believe they are also quite top-rated. However, since our post focuses on children with bruxism, the last two options may be more fitted.
Comparison of the Mouth Guards for Kids
Here’s how these mouth guards compare, and you can pick the one that best suits your budget and the needs of your child:
| Header #1 | Header #2 | Header #3 | Header #3 | Header #3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pro Teeth Hybrid Night Guard | Dual-layer design for optimal comfort and protection | Higher price point compared to other options | More comfort | $169.99 - $209.99 |
| JS Dental Lab Hybrid Guard | Slim profile for natural jaw movement | May require adjustment or re-molding for optimal fit | Versatile mouth guard for individual comfort | $145 |
| Sporting Smiles Teeth Grinding | Multi-layered construction for durability and absorption | Might appear bulky and require some getting used to. | Heavy grinders or severe bruxism | $90 - $105 |
| The Clear Club Multi-Color Guard | Slim and comfortable design | May not provide a custom fit for individual children | Children who prefer colorful mouth guards | $136 - $170 |
| Oral Mart Youth Mouth Guard for Kids | Customizable fit for children | Some users may find it bulky or uncomfortable | Budget-conscious parents | $12.99 – $15.99 |
FAQ
Yes, it is recommended for kids to wear mouth guards for various reasons, including to address bruxism and when playing high-impact sports.
To wear a mouth guard for kids, position the mouth guard over the top teeth and gently press it down against the teeth to achieve a comfortable and secure fit.
Mouth guards create a protective barrier that absorbs the forces generated by grinding or clenching. By cushioning the impact, mouth guards help reduce the risk of dental damage, such as tooth fractures, wear, or breakage.
Yes, the materials used in the listed mouth guards are safe for children. They are made from BPA-free and latex-free materials, which are considered safe and non-toxic.
Yes, these mouth guards have features that enhance comfort for children, such as a slim profile to allow for natural jaw movement, a customizable fit for optimal comfort, and a soft interior to reduce discomfort.
Sources
- Children and Bruxism (2023). Retrieved 13 June 2023, from https://www.dentalcare.com/en-us/ce-courses/ce485/children-and-bruxism
- Teeth Grinding in Children (2023). Retrieved 13 June 2023, from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/bruxism/teeth-grinding-children
- Sleep Bruxism in Children: Etiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment—A Literature Review (2021). Retrieved 13 June 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8471284/
- Does my child need a night guard? (2020). Retrieved 13 June 2023, from https://warrpda.org/child-night-guard/
- Sleep bruxism in children: relationship with screen-time and sugar consumption (2021). Retrieved 13 June 2023, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590142721000045
