Have you ever considered that your kids, even the ones who don’t play football, should be using mouth guards when they play any sport? Mouth guards have been a staple piece in contact football equipment gear, hockey gear, lacrosse gear, and the boxing arena for a long time. Encouragingly, we’re starting to find them used more often in other sports that aren’t considered “contact sports” as well. These other sports include professional basketball, professional soccer, skateboarding, roller derby, biking, and more.

Why It’s a Good Idea for Your Kid to Wear a Mouth Guard

Your school’s team may not require your kids to wear a mouth guard for his or her chosen sport, but we’re going to talk about why they should be worn.

Just because a sport isn’t classified as a contact sport, doesn’t mean your kid won’t have a dramatic fall or take a hit to the head. Sports like soccer and basketball restrict physical contact between players with their “foul” systems but any of you who have played soccer or basketball or even just watched, have seen that fouls do occur. Furthermore, those accidental contacts can be truly cringe worthy, resulting in injuries. 

Sometimes it’s an arm swinging around with the ball, the elbow cocked and unintentionally lands on the defender’s jaw. Sometimes it’s a midfielder who slams to the ground when they’re slide tackled. Or maybe you’ve witnessed a fearsome trick on the half pike only to watch the skater miss the landing and crash.

What to Do in Case of Dental Trauma or Injury

The American Dental Assistants Association states that about 20 million kids are involved in official sports programs across our nation, moreover an even greater 80 million kids are participating on a recreational (and unsupervised) level. Combine that knowledge with the information that five million teeth are lost on a yearly basis due to dental trauma and injuries from sports.

Here are the common dental injuries sustained by athletes. We’ve outlined how to care for them in the immediate aftermath until you can get yourself and your kid to the dentist’s chair. If the injury occurs during a game, please do not wait until the game is over to go to the dentist. The sooner the damage to the teeth are addressed, the better the outcome.

Broken or chipped tooth, or a root fracture

• Carefully bite down on a towel or washcloth to help hold the tooth still within the mouth in place.
• Transport any fragments to the dentist office in milk, or gauze soaked in saline.

Tooth knocked out

• Pick up the tooth by the crown, but do not touch the root of the tooth.
• Do not attempt to brush, or sterilize the tooth.
• Transport tooth to the dentist office in milk, or gauze soaked in saline.

Tooth in the socket but incorrectly positioned

(if the tooth has been pushed back or forward, or further into the socket)

• Do not attempt to fix positioning.
• Carefully bit down on a towel or washcloth to hold tooth still and go to the dentist’s office.

Studies Show Mouth Guards Protect from Dental Trauma and Injury

That’s right, research supports the use of mouth guards. In 2018, a group of researchers worked together to perform a review and meta analysis of 14 studies that were selected for the study due to their subject matter. They investigated, “ the impact of mouth guards (MG) on the prevalence of dento-alveolar trauma (DT) among athletes of contact sports.”

The conclusions this study found are significant and persuasive. They determined that mouth guard users were 82%-93% less likely to experience dento-facial injuries. Additionally, non-mouth guard users had a prevalence of dental trauma of 48.31% to 59.98%, as opposed to mouth guard users who had a prevalence of dental trauma at only 7.5% to 7.75%.

That’s a tremendous difference, isn’t it? The American Dental Association (ADA) has been supportive of increasing the use of mouth guards and advocates that they be used in all sports and recreational activities.

Types of Mouth Guards

If the idea of paying for a custom mouth guard for each of your kids causes your wallet to shrivel up and your heart to beat faster with anxiety, take a deep breath. There are three types of mouth guards on available on the market today at a range of prices.

Stock – Stock mouth guards are exactly what they sound like. They can be bought just about anywhere that has a sporting equipment aisle. They are however, the economical option, as they are inexpensive and preformed. These stock mouth guards may come in a range of sizes to choose from such as “youth” or “adult”, but they won’t conform to your kid’s jaw. This means they can be bulky consequently making it difficult to talk, and can cause discomfort, even gagging. 

Boil and Bite – These mouth guards are a step up from the stock mouth guards. As you might have guessed from their catchy name, they can at least partially conform to your kid’s individual bite. These are more likely found in sporting goods stores. You place the mouth guard in boiling water for them to soften, then while still soft, have your kid bite down and hold it. 

Instructions will vary depending on the brand, so be sure to read thoroughly before you boil and bite. This type of mouth guard will cost more than the stock guards but will provide a more customized fit, consequently making them more comfortable and less likely to induce any gagging. Unfortunately biting through these guards is relatively common on the grounds that the material will degrade over time and use.

Custom – A custom made mouth guard will provide the maximum protection possible for your kid’s teeth and jaw. Whereas a custom guard will fit perfectly to the nooks and crannies of the teeth. They are made from high grade materials so bite-through is rare, and the integrity of the materials will not degrade. These mouth guards also have the benefit of being the most comfortable. Having a custom fit ensures that your kid will be able to talk, and breath easily.

Over the Counter Mouth Guard that Have the ADA Seal of Acceptance

If you can’t afford to fit your kids for custom mouth guards, but want something dentist approved, there is one mouth guard that has the ADA Seal of Acceptance, the Game On Mouthguard.

If you really want a custom mouth guard, talk to us at your next visit. We can discuss your options together and find a solution.

1. Siblings with Positive Attitudes Go First

When you have more than one kid, schedule their appointments back to back. It’s easier for you this way and can be beneficial for your younger or more anxious kids. Have the sibling with positive experience and attitude go first (usually this will be the oldest). Your other kids will see their sibling come out of the dental chair with a smile, and this can be encouraging. Often younger siblings want to copy what their older siblings do, hopping into the dentist chair can be just another cool thing that big sister or big brother does.

2. Schedule Around Naptime

For your kids that take naps, scheduling around the nap is key. Never schedule a dental visit during nap time and consider your child’s emotional state close before and after naptime. Try to avoid scheduling during a time they are prone to grumpiness. Kids that come in happy are more likely to be open to doing something new.

3. Schedule After a Meal or a Snack

As with sleep, we don’t want a dental appointment to interfere with mealtime or snack time. Hungry kids can be grumpy kids, and let’s face it. Being hungry isn’t fun for anyone. Make sure they’ve eaten before their dental appointment so we can avoid hungry tummy rumbles or impatience to go eat. While it’s best that they have eaten recently before a dental appointment, please don’t offer snacks on the car ride to the office or in the waiting room just before. 

4. Role Play at Home

Before their first dental visit, it’s a good idea to role play with your kids at home. Playing pretend is part of every child’s normal day and can a fun and engaging opportunity for learning and preparation. Take turns being the dentist and being the patient. For the first time, maybe demonstrate on a doll or stuffed animal. Be sure you give your kids the opportunity to be the dentist and you the patient. It can be fun for them to have the position of the “doer” and you can demonstrate how to be cooperative.

5. Handle Your Own Anxiety

Be self-aware. Do you have your own anxiety about trips to the dentist? If you do, take some time before hand to prepare yourself to be calm and encouraging. Our children learn so much from us and can pick up on attitudes and behaviors that we might not be aware of displaying. Do your research about pediatric dentists so that you can feel confident about where you take your kids for their dental needs. If you need to, go in and check the place out on your own, so that it doesn’t feel new to you the first time you go with your kid.

6. Watch Your Vocabulary

In accordance with being self-aware about any dental anxiety you may have, also beware your language about the dentist. When you talk about needing to go to the dentist for yourself, do you complain about it as something that you “have to do”? Be mindful to speak about it in a positive manner. Avoid talking about shots, or pain. Give them the opportunity to have a positive experience by not tainting their expectations. Also, please never use going to the dentist as punishment or threaten with it. Dental checkups for kids should be a routine like going to the doctor for a yearly checkup even when they aren’t sick. 

7. Don’t Offer Rewards for Dental Visits

Avoid bribing or offering rewards for going to the dentist. Bribing or offering rewards implies that a trip to the dentist office won’t be fun so you have to offer something to balance it out. It sets the tone that a dentist appointment is something to be endured which casts it in a negative light. 

8. Read a Book About the Dentist

Reading a book with your kid about a visit to the dentist is a great way to help set their expectations and help them visualize what to expect. Kids learn a lot from picture books and reading. Here’s a list of some kid’s books that can help you and your family out.

• Dora Goes to the Dentist by Random House and Robert Roper: Your kids don’t have to love Dora the Explorer to love this book. It focuses on having your child look for certain objects in the picture and takes them through the process of what to expect.

• Just Going to the Dentist by Mercer Mayor: In this book, the main character has a cavity and has to get a filling.

• ABC Dentist by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Liz Murphy: This book goes through the entire alphabet with words applying to dentistry.

• Visiting the Dentist by Charlotte Guillain: This book is a beginning reader book with a glossary and chapters. With photos, instead of illustrations it caters to an older child.

9. Start Young

Familiarity goes a long way for kids, new experiences at new places are always harder than the known. Start taking your kids for dental checkups at a young age. We recommend your child’s first visit be when that first little tooth erupts. Having them come in for regular checkups will make visiting the dentist easier as they get older.

10. Do the Paperwork Beforehand

Ask for the patient forms ahead of time and fill them out at home, so that when you get to the office, wait time isn’t any longer than necessary, and you can have your hands free to engage with your child. 

Remember that we are on your side, we want what is best for your child and we want for them to have a positive dental experience. Feel free to talk with us ahead of time about any concerns or anxieties you or your child may have. Together we can ensure that dentist visits occur with happy healthy smiles along the way.