Breaking the jaw alignment myth: why Ronaldo should save his money.

Has Ronaldo fallen for the latest fad?

Suggestions to improve human performance are crucial in the ever-increasingly competitive athletic environment. So when a new mouth guard is invented that aligns the jaw and claims to improve:

• balance
• strength
• speed
• endurance
• agility
• power
• accuracy

is it too good to be true?

Cristiano Ronaldo, Shaquile O’neal, Evander Holyfield are all wearing them so they must work right? Testimonials are one thing but is there any hard hitting research to back these claims up? Is the effect of jaw alignment on athletic performance yet another myth or is it perhaps an exciting development for physical trainers and athletes?

Is there any evidence behind the mouth guard claims?

The mouth guard claims to work by properly aligning and relaxing the muscles in the face and jaw which may improve strength and balance. Theoretically it has been suggested that jaw position may affect posture and stability in individuals.

However there is no concrete evidence that there is any relationship between jaw position and gross motor performance. In fact one research paper by Mcardle et al., (1984) revealed no differences in physiological or performance capabilities by aligning the jaw correctly compared to placebo and control measures.

On the other hand another study (commissioned by the mouthguards creator!) compared their mouthguard with a regular custom fitted mouthguard. They found that when wearing their mouthguard 30 sec wingate, eight 10 sec wingate intervals and vertical jump performance were significantly improved.

However they found no improvements in bench press performance. This study shows some significant improvements which are attributed to the mouthguard and its effects, yet it is important to highlight a few methodological limitations of this study.

Firstly there was an absence of a control group wearing no mouth guard meaning that although improvements were seen using the pure power mouthguard, these may not be evident compared to no mouth guard at all. And considering many of the products testimonials are from athletes who do not require a mouth guard for their sport, such as golf, is there reason to wear it at all?

In addition the testing sample is relatively small (22), compromising the statistical power of the study. Adding these limitations to the fact that funding for the research came from the creators of the product providing potential bias to the equation; this study’s conclusions should be taken with an air of caution.

Summary

With contradicting and lack of scientific evidence it is crucial to question the validity and theory of jaw alignment actually effecting performance. Is it worth the £1000+ it costs?

However it is also important to note that “lack of evidence is not evidence of absence”. This theory hasn’t been disproved, and there may be some truth behind it, with some clinical studies showing temporomanidibular disorder (TMD) affecting the atlas vertebrae.

It is suggested any effect on the position of the spine and muscles of the neck and spine may reduce performance. However until this is documented I would be hesitant to recommend the pure power mouthguard, or any other similar products, to any athlete!

Fran Low MSc

Further Reading:

The importance of Posture

References

Arent, S. M., McKenna, J. & Golem, D. L. (2010). Effects of a neuromuscular dentistry designed mouthguard on muscular endurance and anaerobic power. Comparative Exercise physiology, 1-7.

McArdle, W. D., Goldstein, L. B., Lastm F. C., Spina, R., Lichtman, S. et al., (1984). Temporomandibular joint repositioning and exercise performance: a double-blind study. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 14, 228-233.