The Pure Power MouthGuard improves strength and balance and cures aches and pains.
Actually, the seemingly ambrosial mouthguard accomplishes all this by correcting a person's bite. The technology the mouth guard utilizes is the decades-old field of neuromuscular dentistry. Its application to the athletic world - as a natural performance enhancer - is new.
Mouthpieces using neuromuscular technology have been used in the past to treat jaw and ear pain and unexplained migraines.
Neuromuscular dentistry uses TENS (Thanscutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) to relax the muscles in the jaw. That's the secret to the whole process, said Roger Roubal, a neuromuscular dentist in Omaha and the only dentist in Nebraska certified to mold a Pure Power MouthGuard, or PPM.
"Basically, we as human beings want to stand upright and walk and get feedback from our vision and muscles to help keep our position in space," he said.
A bad bite and visual signals are interrelated, and a bad bite taxes the brain to correct the inaccurate muscle signals.
"The PPM gives better balance so we can use muscles more optimally and not have to fight the typically poor body posture," he said. "It doesn't make them stronger. It just allows them to achieve maximum strength and efficiency. It's very simplistic."
Bite refers to how the upper and lower teeth come together. Robual said normally, the lower jaw is more forward and a bit apart so the two don't touch. The PPM fills in the gap between the teeth. The clear mouthpiece fits over the lower teeth.
"A modified TENS unit relaxes muscles and a jaw tracking device is used to determine the optimal relaxed position of the muscles," he said.
Roubal said the PPM allows 10 to 50 percent more strength and improves balance and endurance. He said Seattle kicker Josh Brown of Husker fame is a fan of the PPM.
Bodybuilder Brandon Stewart decided to get a PPM about six months ago. He heard about how the mouthguard works and the research behind it from Roubal.
"I was skeptical about certain things," he said. "But I noticed an increase in strength and I could do force (more) repetitions out of a workout. It's been a huge benefit."
Stewart said he encounters the same skepticism he had when he tells others about the mouthpiece.
"I was shocked, actually," he said. "I sound like an infomercial but I was totally thrown back. It works really (well)."
Stewart spent a day in Roubal's office doing bite impressions.
"They hooked me up to a machine and relaxed my jaw with … totally awesome, totally crazy stuff," he said. "It's pretty high tech, pretty cool."
Roubal said a fitting can take anywhere from an hour to two hours and cost $750 to $1,600. Because the PPM is used to increase athletic performance, it isn't covered by insurance.
"(Athletes) should be wearing mouthguards in contact sports anyway," he said. "I'm excited about improving athletic performance without drugs."
Stewart said he doesn't think a natural performance-enhancing mouthguard will diminish the steroids market.
"People will use anything that gives a competitive edge," he said. "But the PPM is something that works. I use it. I'm not going to wear a clear plastic thing if it's not going to work."
kiahhaslett@dailynebraskan.com
