What are Mouth Guards?

If you partake in an activity which puts your mouth in danger you might want to consider wearing a mouth guard. They help protect your teeth from being dislodged or damaged if they are subjected to a heavy, impacting blow. This is worth doing so that you don’t have to undergo an invasive procedure to restore damaged teeth or even have missing teeth replaced.

Physical sports such as lacrosse, rugby, American football and hockey can all leave your mouth exposed to damage. The same can be said for activities such as mountain biking or horse riding where it is possible that you might take a heavy fall which will impact on your face and mouth. Some jobs too, such as work with heavy machinery can also be dangerous for the mouth. Mouth guards are advisable for those who grind their teeth so that teeth do not get ground down during the night.

In all of these cases it is advisable to wear a mouth guard to protect your teeth from damage. There are three main types of mouth guard. The most basic type can be bought from a specialist retailer. These stock protectors can be worn immediately and are cheap but they really only offer minimal protection. A serious impact to the mouth will barely be protected by a stock protector because it has not been fitted for the unique shape of your mouth.

Also affordable and widely available form sports equipment retailers are ‘boil and bite’ mouth guards. These fit better to your teeth because you plunge them into boiling water before biting into them so that they are shaped to fit the contours of your teeth.

The greatest degree of protection is to be found from mouth guards that your dentist constructs individually for you. By taking moulds of your teeth, as if a brace is going to be fitted, your dentist can fabricate a mouth guard which will fit your teeth perfectly and offer you the optimum protection from accidents to the mouth.