A night guard is used to prevent unwanted grinding of the teeth during nights which reduces the pressure over the teeth and the jaws.
When a bruxism patient, who doesn’t have tooth pain or TMJ, doesn’t wear a night guard, it is not a cause for great concern. However, when a patient is symptomatic, they should wear night guards compulsorily else it might worsen the condition.
It is better to avoid wearing night guards during eating since chewing on hard substances like bones might damage the guard.
You can just wash the night guard under running water and place it in a closed container.