Mouth Guards
Many hundreds of teeth are chipped, fractured or lost each year as a result of sports injuries. If you or your family plays any kind of contact sport, every game is a risk of damaging your teeth.
A mouthguard (or gumshield) will only protect your teeth if it fits really closely and if it has the correct thickness and design for your particular mouth and for the kind of sport you play. A loose-fitting gumshield can cause more damage than not wearing one at all, in fact it can be extremely dangerous if it could slip back towards your throat. To be really effective, a mouthguard must sit tightly and securely around your teeth and fit very accurately over your teeth and gums.
More about Mouth Guards
A do-it-yourself mouthguard rarely, if ever, fits accurately enough to offer you the kind of protection and security you need. It’s worth having one made properly by your dentist, who takes an impression (mould) of your mouth to make sure that the mouthguard fits precisely to the exact shape of your teeth and gums. It is made of a soft vinyl (plastic) material, using special vacuum equipment to get the closest possible fit. They are available in a wide range of different colours.
Other leisure activities can be just as dangerous for your teeth. Most skateboarders or roller-skaters are sensible enough to wear elbow and knee protectors, but few spare a thought for their teeth.
Your teeth are precious – don’t put them at risk.