Mouthguards: non-negotiable
A mouthguard cushions teeth, lips and jaw during impact. It is the cheapest insurance in combat sports, and the item most often “forgotten” by beginners right up until it isn't.
The three tiers
- Stock guards — pre-formed, no moulding. Cheap, poor fit, mostly a box-ticker. Skip if you can.
- Boil-and-bite — thermoplastic you mould at home. The standard choice: good protection at low cost when moulded carefully.
- Custom-fitted — made from a dental impression. Best fit, protection and ability to breathe/talk; worth it for regular sparring and competition.
Moulding a boil-and-bite properly
- Follow the maker's times — over-softening thins the material where you need it most.
- Mould in front of a mirror: centre it, bite firmly, suck out air and press into the front teeth with fingers and tongue.
- Cold-water set, then test: it should stay on your upper teeth without clenching.
- Bad mould? Most can be re-boiled once or twice — a loose guard protects badly.
Getting the fit right, day to day
A properly fitted guard should let you breathe and talk without much extra effort once you're used to it — some designs build in breathing channels at the front specifically for this. If the back edge digs in or gags you, trim only that back edge carefully with scissors; never trim the biting surface itself, which is where the protection actually lives. A guard that starts feeling loose after weeks of use has usually fatigued and is worth re-moulding or replacing rather than tolerating.
Single or double?
Single (upper) guards are standard for striking sports — they protect well and let you breathe. Double guards protect both rows but restrict airflow; some people prefer them, most don't. Braces need brace-specific guards — ask your orthodontist.
Mouthguards with braces
Standard boil-and-bite guards are not designed for braces and can trap heat and pressure against the brackets in ways that cause problems rather than solve them. Orthodontic mouthguards are built with extra internal room to accommodate braces safely, and an orthodontist is the right person to confirm fit — this is one area of gear buying where a specialist call genuinely beats a generic guide.
Mouthguards for kids
A mouthguard matters from the very first contact drill a child does, and growing mouths and changing teeth mean junior guards typically need re-moulding or replacing more often than an adult's. See kids' and youth gear for the wider picture on why junior equipment isn't just a scaled-down adult version.
Replace it when
- It's bitten through, split or thin at the impact points;
- Fit loosens (it will, as the material fatigues);
- Each season for regular sparrers, and after any dental work that changes your bite.
Rinse after use, brush it occasionally with a toothbrush, and keep it in a vented case — a closed wet case is a science experiment.