Do you have a child who plays sports? You’ve probably been diligent to purchase helmets, knee pads, shin guards and other protective equipment before their first practice. However, have you considered protecting their smile too? While athletic mouthguards aren’t required for every sport, they should be considered for sports that involve any type of contact, whether it is a ball or another player.

Traumatic injuries to the mouth are all too common in youth sports. They may include knocked out teeth, chipped teeth, lacerations to the lip or cheek and more. Dental accidents can not only be costly, but they can produce serious and long-term consequences within your child’s smile. Fortunately, many of these injuries can be prevented by simply wearing an athletic mouthguard.

It is common for parents to respond that their child isn’t willing to wear a mouthguard during the game or that he or she is constantly playing with it instead of playing their sport. Many of the issues of distraction and comfort can be solved by choosing the right mouthguard, or one that is custom fabricated from your dentist.

You don’t have to go far to find an athletic mouthguard, as they line the shelves of many drugstores and sporting goods stores. However, while these are considerably cheaper, they involve a “boil-and-bite” fitting that could jeopardize the whole purpose of wearing a mouthguard.

Store-bought mouthguards aren’t going to fit like a custom-made model from your dentist. A custom mouthguard will be crafted to fit over every nook and crevice of your child’s bite. The material is higher-grade, which means it will likely be more comfortable to wear as well as more durable for longer-term use.

When mouthguards don’t fit properly, kids don’t keep them in their mouth. You’ll see them pushing it in and out with their tongue, or holding it in their hand between plays. A custom mouthguard, however, should stay firmly in place, allowing your child to breathe and even speak easily with it inside their mouth.

While comfort is certainly important, a mouthguard that fits can actually do its job – which is to protect your child’s growing smile. Not only can a well-fit mouthguard prevent dramatic injuries to the teeth, gums and jaw, but it has also been reported that mouthguards aid in the prevention of concussions!

To learn more about getting a custom mouthguard for your young athlete, call Soft Touch Dentistry. We assure you that the benefits outweigh the cost.

Posted on behalf of Dr. Sarah Thompson, Soft Touch Dentistry
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