A dentist told me how to make my own night guard back in 1989-1990, and I did it from then until about 2003.  VERY CHEAP!!!  Since it doesn't cover All the teeth, or hold them in place, the shifting of the teeth with growth wouldn't be as much of a problem either.

She had me cut a junior/child football mouthguard down to fit only over my front teeth, including the incisors, on the BOTTOM.  In other words, NOT the bicuspid or multi-pointed teeth.  Placing it on the bottom decreases the likelyhood of pushing it out with your tongue.  Then, you also want to trim the depth so that the front and rear flaps do not make contact with the gums.  If it touches the gums, it cuts off the blood flow, and will cause your gums to recede.  Then, you follow the instructions to form fit it using near boinling water, and gently press it down on the bottom teeth so that it's not Too thick.  Too thin, and it gets chewed through in less than a few months.  Then trim the strap off.  It used to take me 2-3 tries to get one right, but at $1-$2 a piece, who cares?  I had to make a new one about once a year. 

The best way to cut it was with wire cutters, and a set of Large toenail clippers to trim the sharp edges.   I'm not sure if there would be a greater risk of a child choking on it than an adult. Maybe you could leave some of the strap intact.  I guess you could ask your dentist.

Hey there,

Great article! I have always ground my teeth at night. As I moved about regularly with work and dentists were regularly changing, nothing was ever done except continual replacing of fillings I cracked.. I saw a dentist at the ripe old age of 31 who toold me quite bluntly my teeth were trashed and I would probably have to have them removed in 5 years or so as nothing could be done! Thankfully I started seeing a fabulous dentist who worked in a remote area who told me it was a load of codswallop. She had me fitted for an occlusional splint ( night guard ) snd referrede me to a prosthdontist in Adelaide ( I went there every year to see family) He examined my mouth , jaw and bite and worked out the best plan of attack! I needed to have braces to correct my bite, then needed to have my back teeth repaired and rebuilt prior to having my front teeth rebuilt. It has taken 4 years so far (mostly as it is an expensive process!) 19 months of lower braces, 8 months of back teeth fixing up and now I am about to undertake the front rebuilding.  I will always have to have a night guard. However instead of having new ones every few months as my bite changed, the orthodontist fitted me with a retainer that cost bugger all compared to a proper splint. After a couple of months, it looks like it has been a victim of a blender, but at $80.00 a pop instead of $280.00 it has worked well.

The moral of the story...If I had of had a splint earlier, I would not be having to go through this now! I would have saved myslef several thousand dollars worth of filling replacements due to cracked teeth and my smile would have been a lot nicer than it has been (with my eroded front teeth for the last 9 years) for a lot longer. If in doubt, get a referal to a good Orthodontist or prosthdontist ASAP!

(Hi Izzy! Nice article!)

Bruxism (teeth grinding) in children is pretty common. Especially when their milk teeth are coming through and again when their adult teeth replace them. Usually it is nothing to worry about as they grow out of the habit before they do any serious damage to their adult teeth. Children who grind their teeth are at greater risk of bruxism in later life though, which is worth bearing in mind.

However, as ElaineR's daughter has signs of damage on her milk teeth it may be more of a problem. It's probably worth pressing the dentist to find out how much damage has been done to the milk teeth. (Severe bruxism can do some serious damage.)

If you're really worried, it might be worth getting an `occlusal splint' (nightguard). Though I suspect a custom made one wouldn't be appropriate as her teeth will still be moving around. (Custom made devices from a dentist are moulded to fit one's teeth.) Your best bet would be to look for an `off-the-shelf' device which is not moulded to the teeth, and is small enough to fit a child's mouth. The only guard I can think of that might be suitable is a device called the Slim Comfort. (Note: The page I've linked probably has the best pictures but if you are in the US you should be able to buy it cheaper from an American retailer.)

It's probably only worth worrying about getting a nightguard at this stage if the bruxism is severe. If it is, you need to bear in mind that the nightguards you buy will probably only last a few months; severe bruxers will destroy any device put in their mouth!

It's also worth thinking about how well a 12 year old girl will get on with a nightguard. It takes a fair amount of self-discipline to make yourself use a nightguard as they take some time to get used to. - If you put something in your mouth your body will think it's food and produce more saliva. This can be very distracting whilst you are trying to get to sleep!

Finally, I think it's worth thinking about why she is grinding her teeth. It often isn't clear why people grind and bruxism in children is fairly normal. But in adults bruxism is strongly associated with stress. It's difficult to imagine why a child might be stressed but it can happen. For example, elsewhere on Minti I read a message from a mother who said that her daughter's bruxism was greatly reduced when measures were taken to prevent another child from bullying her.

So I'm afraid there are no easy simple choices when it comes to bruxism in children. But I hope I've provided some food for thought for anyone who is concerned about their own children.

More information on teeth grinding (albeit tailored for adults) can be found at The Bruxism Association.

good advice, i think i do this in my sleep

xoxo

My 14yr old ground her teeth for as long as I can remember, I wasn't aware that a guard would make such a difference. Well we have just had to invested this years holiday fund on braces and she will need 2 of her teeth capped as they have been ground down a lot! She would probably have always needed braces but the ground teeth could have been prevented. It's not cool to wear a guard to bed, but it sure is a better alternative than having to have teeth capped or getting falsies!

We need our teeth for a long time, unless your happy to have none or falsies!  LOl.... so investing a a guard is a great idea.  Grinding teeth can do a lot of damage and is a real problem.  Kids do seem to grind their teeth at some stage but i think if it continues, it's a good idea to get it checked out.

great article

rue

Great advice and article...

xx cazza

Hi Izzy,

Thanks for a great article . . My 8 yr old grinds her teeth quite often and I have been worried about her teeth . . She is seeing her dentist next week and I will be asking about a night mouth guard . .

Cheers Kellz

My aunt still uses that actually.. (probably a different type but the same thing)
It helped her alot and is glad that she had to use it to help her from damaging her teeth when she was younger and older (because some adults do it without them even knowning!)

Good advice, I'll keep this in mind! (Hubby does sometimes but NOT like what my aunt was like)