Avoid Losing Teeth During Contact Sports
If you are the type of person who prefers to play rather than watch sports, then you may benefit from this post. Every year Erbsville Dental see’s several emergency cases related to tooth loss during sports. Both kids and adults alike have lost teeth playing hockey, football, rugby, and soccer. Not all incidents are avoidable, flukes happen, but can some of these accidents be avoided? Or at least can the inevitable damage be minimized?
Wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
With every sport there is equipment available to protect your body from injury, this includes your teeth. A simple and effective device everyone who plays contact sports should own is a sports mouthguard. A properly fitted mouthguard will protect against dental fractures and oral lacerations by absorbing and dispersing traumatic impact. In fact, such a mouthguard stabilizes jaw movement and can also reduce concussions by 50%!
Dr. Mathews provides custom fitting sports mouthguards free to pediatric clients (under 18) and at a minimal cost for adults. They provide better protection than boil and form versions found in stores. Read more about custom sport mouthguards here.
Hockey
In hockey, tooth loss is most commonly the result of high sticks. Even though it is penalised, the 2- or 4-minute infraction just doesn’t pay for the loss you will suffer. The best way to protect yourself from high sticking is a full cage or full-face protection. A half shield although cool, and less intrusive, does very little to protect your mouth from sticks, elbows, pucks, and collisions.
American Football
In football, a good mouthguard and a helmet are a must. It’s a game of continual impacts. Less organized “pick-up” football games are more likely occasions to lose a tooth or two as helmets are expensive and not often worn. So, for these types of casual games with friends, at the very least wear a mouthguard from your dentist. Remember, they also have been proven to reduce your chances of concussions which has become a real cause for concern. Reed more about concussions from Teens Health.
Rugby & Soccer
In rugby or soccer games you can easily get a mouth injury from contact with an elbow, knee, foot, or someone’s head. In these sports there is little equipment available to protect your body including your teeth from injury. So, there are two things you can do when playing these sports. First, use your Erbsville Dental mouthguard. And second, be aware of potential situations where you could get hit. For example, when following closely behind an opponent their elbows will naturally be swinging, and especially when they quickly change direction. Watch for it and avoid contact so that your permanent teeth remain permanently in place. Think ahaed about other potential impacts and keep your head up to avoid them.
Check Your Surroundings
Playing in parks and school yards designed for your sport is always a good idea because there are less obstructions that could be safety hazards. If these are not available to you and you must play in a parking lot, road, or back yard, be aware of your surroundings. Are there obstacles, tripping hazards, hard surfaces, or outright dangerous sections?
Erbsville Dental hopes you play safe and keep all your teeth where they belong, but if you lose teeth playing then call us immediately, in some situation’s teeth can be saved, even reinserted. (Read “Knocked Out Teeth“) If not, cosmetic dentistry services are also available.
At your next appointment ask about a custom sports mouthguard. Get one for all your kids and yourself and avoid losing teeth during contact sports.
