Today our orthodontists in Burnaby, Langley, and North Delta explain why it's important to wear a mouth guard if you play sports and wear braces.
If you are having your teeth straightened with braces, odds are you are already making some changes to your lifestyle to accommodate your treatment including your diet and oral hygiene routine.
But, if you participate in sporting activities, you will also have to make some additional accommodations in order to protect your oral health.
Most of the time our orthodontists at SmileTown Orthodontics Braces & Invisalign will recommend our patients that have braces to limit their level of sports participation (if they can) to help lower the impact sports could have on their treatment. This helps to lower any risk of injury or damage to their braces. Although, we do realize that this solution isn't preferable or possible for everyone.
If you choose to take part in any high-impact sports during your orthodontic treatment, you must wear a sports mouthguard to help protect your teeth, gums, jaw, and braces from becoming damaged.
Despite this fact, you will have to wear a mouthguard for playing any high-impact sports whether you wear braces or not, however, the presence of braces in your mouth increases your risk.
For starters, braces are made of small pieces of metal, which means you’re at a greater risk for lacerations and injuries to the soft tissue of your mouth if you take a blow in your head or face. Also, it's expensive to repair damaged braces and it can cause setbacks in your treatment.
Finally, you need to know as your teeth gradually shift into their new positions during your orthodontic treatment, they become slightly loosened and aren't as securely set in your jaw as they normally would be. This means that if you experience an impact on your head or face, you have a higher risk of getting a tooth knocked out.
Wearing a mouthguard can help protect your mouth, teeth, and other facial structures, as well as minimizes your risk of injury.
What types of sports mouthguards are available?
You can purchase fairly inexpensive stock or boil and bite mouthguards at almost every sporting goods store, however, when it comes to mouthguards, you get what you pay for.
While they can be more pricey, custom-made mouthguards offer better protection. A custom mouthguard is made based on molds taken of your teeth and therefore provides the best fit, comfort, and protection.