Though many of us may have heard about mouth guards, finding answers for the same may not be easy. This is because of lack of knowledge and information. Hence, in this article, we will try and find answers to the question what are mouth guards for, so that we know what they do. We also can make a buying decision based on information and knowledge.
What are Mouth Guards For?
Mouth guards are simply plastic or laminate devices that are used commonly in sports. It is used for preventing oral injuries that could impact the cheeks, mouth, teeth, jaw and tongue. Your dental health affects your overall health, so it’s important to care for your oral hygiene. Hence, it makes sense to have some useful information for sports persons so that unwanted injuries in sports can be avoided.
Some Important Facts
Before going in for some more information about mouth guards, we need to put in perspective some facts. According to American Dental Association, that one out of three dental injuries in has some connection with sports. Hence, it makes perfect sense to use a mouth guard to prevent such injuries. In fact, a well-chosen mouth guard can prevent around 200,000 oral injuries that could cause to the mouth, jaws, and cheek, apart from teeth and gums.
What Types of Injuries Could One See
A mouth guard could prevent many types of dental injuries. The most common injuries to the mouth and surrounding areas as broken teeth, chipped teeth, bridgework, fractured crowns, cheek and lip injuries as well as potential root damage to jaws due to fractures and concussions. These types of injuries can lead to needing a bone graft and possible dental implants.
Athletes and sports persons are obviously at higher risks of oral injury and most of these can be prevented with the use of a mouth guard. You can get a custom mouth guard from your dentist, who will make it to fit your teeth specifically. It has become mandatory to use mouth guard in some collision sports such as hockey, boxing and football where the risk of injury is quite high. It is a preventive device that could make the difference between safety and serious sports injuries.
Which Players are at Higher Risks
A study was conducted on high school athletes and it was found that almost 75% of injuries occurred in players who were not wearing mouth guards. It was all the more prevalent in some very rough sports like basketball and baseball. While around nine percent suffered from some forms of oral injuries, another three percent reported injuries that led to loss of consciousness. 56% of concussions, according to studies, might have been avoided had they worn mouth guards. Hence, there is no denying the fact that there are many reasons for wearing mouth guards rather than staying away from it. It is quite obvious therefore that this device is quite useful for children and adults. For some sports, the mouth guards may have to be tougher when compared to others.
Conclusion
You should now have a better understanding to the question “what are mouth guards for?”. It is a very small price to pay not only to play the sport safer, but to keep your teeth, jaw, and more protected. Hence, use of mouth guards should not be ignored under any circumstances.