April is National Facial Protection Month. As brave as we appear in front of our children, we all know how alarming it can be when nosebleeds, bumps, or bruises leave a mark on their precious faces. If your children play sports, the likelihood for injury is that much higher.
How many of you out there have had a child chip or dislocated tooth? The numbers are high. Last year, the National Youth Sports Safety Administration estimated 3 million teeth would be knocked out in youth sporting events! Kids who wear braces are even more vulnerable, though their risk is only slightly higher.
The thing is, preventing oral injury is not only possible, but easy. Send young athletes into the field wearing a protective mouth guard. It’s inexpensive and unobtrusive, and According to the American Dental Association, its use prevents over 200,000 oral injuries per year.
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As far as I am concerned, a mouth guard should be right in line with the helmet, shoulder pads, and knee pads. The majority of kids don’t wear them during games and matches because they aren’t required to. It’s not one of the rules of the game to wear one, and according to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, 67 percent of parents do not insist on mouth guard use by their children. But here are just a few more reasons why all of that should change:
· Athletes who do not wear mouth guards are 60 times more likely to damage their teeth.
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· Mouth guards protect the jaws as well as the mouth, and in addition to the teeth, mouth guards protect the lips, cheeks, and tongue.
· It costs much less to replace or repair a mouth guard than to repair a knocked-out tooth.
There are many "boil and bite" guards out there that are extremely effective, even for those children wearing braces. In addition, some Dentists may easily make a protective and cohesive, custom fitted mouth guard made from an impression of your child’s teeth. However, this option is not an option for children wearing braces.
I am an authorized provider of Under Armour mouth guards. No matter which brand you choose, the important thing is to protect your child's mouth, weather the Sport requires you to or not.
For more information on this or any other topic, please visit our website at www.braceace.com. Like us on Face book. Follow us on Twitter.
