Mouthguards
You will often hear your family dentist stress the importance of protecting your teeth from the harm of decay and disease. However, it is just as important to protect your teeth from external force and trauma—everything from teeth grinding to obtaining an injury during a sporting event.
For best protective measures in these types of situations, our family dentists recommend the use of mouthguards.
About Mouthguards
Mouthguards protect the teeth, jaw, and the soft tissues of the tongue, lips, and cheek lining.
Types of Mouthguards
Mouthguards can be classified into two main categories:
- Sports Mouthguards – used to protect the jaw and teeth during physical activity and sports such as football, basketball, hockey, boxing, karate, or any other activity where you may be hit in the mouth.
- Nightguards – used by patients who grind or clench their teeth at night; these nocturnal mouthguards protect the teeth and bite during your sleep.
Sports Mouthguards
Whenever you engage in intensive, potentially dangerous physical activity, it is important that you wear the right protection. For football players that means a helmet. For soccer players that means shin guards. For skateboarders that means elbow pads. But for all these activities, and many others, the quintessential protective accessory is the sports mouthguard. According to the American Dental association, 30% of all dental injuries are sports related. By engaging in physical activity without a sports mouthguard, you are at risk for:
- Broken Teeth
- Chipped Teeth
- Fractured Jaws
- Concussions
- Broken Braces/Brackets
- Root Damage to Teeth
Nightguards
Research shows that up to 1/3 of the population exhibits teeth grinding/clenching (typically at night while sleeping). When teeth grinding/clenching becomes chronic it can cause permanent damage to your teeth. Over time it wears down the surface of the teeth, which then leaves the soft dentin beneath the enamel exposed and vulnerable. As a result, you could experience:
- Chipped Teeth
- Tooth Flattening
- Cracked Enamel
- Tooth Loss
- Gum Recession
- Damaged Fillings.
Additionally, grinding/clenching the teeth at night can cause you to wake up with headaches, tooth pain, and a sore jaw. Never fear though; nightguards can alleviate pain, protect teeth from harmful long-term effects, and offer immediate relief to sleep stress.
Get Your Mouthguard Today
Bluff Creek Dental wants to help protect your teeth from harm and pain whenever possible. If you or your child needs a sports mouthguard for protection during physical activity, or a nightguard to treat teeth grinding and clenching, please contact us to learn more or to schedule an appointment with your family dentist in our Chanhassen, MN office. Thank you, we look forward to hearing from you soon!