Mouth Guards And Sports

Jan 15th, 2015
Easton Dentists Mar 1st, 2017

The winter season has arrived which means a number of children are about to begin participating in winter sports such as hockey, basketball, and wrestling.  These sports (among other sports throughout each season) pose a high risk of injury to the mouth.  The unsettling fact is that most children do not wear mouth guards while playing sports.

Although mouth guards are mandatory to wear in some sports such as football, it is recommended by dental professionals to wear a mouth guard in any high contact athletic activity.  A study found that 68% of children do not wear a mouth guard during soccer, basketball, baseball and softball games.  The likelihood of a ball, bat, or body part coming into contact with someone’s mouth is extremely high.  It is estimated that wearing a mouth guard during sports could prevent more than 200,000 oral injuries per year.

Proper fitting mouth guards should be:

– Comfortable.
– Easy to clean.
– Durable and tear resistant.
– Not restricting to breathing or speech.
– Able to easily stay in place.

With the numbers as they are, it is very important for children to protect their teeth and mouth by wearing a mouth guard.  This could be what saves your child from a mouth injury and thousands of dollars in dental expenses.