ADA Adds Mouthguard Category to its Seal of Acceptance Program

The American Dental Association has announced a new category under its ADA Seal of Acceptance Program.

The ADA will now offer the seal to athletic mouthguards, provided the products submit material lists to the association and can demonstrate the product meets the ADA’s dental standards.

The first product to qualify for the seal is the CustMbite MVP mouthguard.

“Awarding the seal to an athletic mouthguard expands the Seal Program to new and emerging areas, which we need to do in order to provide more options for dentists and dental patients,” said Tom Hart, DDS, PhD, chairman of the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs. “This will allow ADA experts to evaluate products that can benefit the American public.”

In its press release, CustMbite MVP co-creator Monroe Elkin, DMD, said the product is already in use at “hundreds” of university athletic programs across the country. According to the company's website, that list includes the University of Notre Dame, Penn State University, and Iowa State University. Elkin said the company considers its product to be the industry’s “gold standard” mouthguard, now that it stands alone with the ADA seal.

The product underwent a series of laboratory tests designed to evaluate its ability to protect teeth from impact trauma.

The ADA’s Seal of Acceptance program dates back to 1931. Today, more than 300 products carry the seal. The program is voluntary, but the association says its seal has been shown to directly impact consumer decision-making.