For those of you with athletic kids, we know that you are concerned about potential injuries while they play. Whether you are worried about a sprained ankle or a broken wrist, you might actually need to be more aware of damaged teeth! Some injuries can be so bad that they require major dental surgery and lead to dental issues in the future. We see a lot of chipped teeth and even the occasional knocked-out tooth, so do your best to prevent these! We’ve compiled a list of some sports that just tend to be a little bit rougher on our kids’ teeth than we may prefer. Encourage them to wear a mouthguard, and read on to learn more!
Skateboarding
Skateboarding, while a real thrill, can be quite dangerous. The most experienced boarders will choose to show off their skills on a half pipe, but even the beginners on the concrete might have issues with injuries after a particularly rough tumble. The momentum of moving forward combined with a fall can lead to broken bones, skinned knees, and even knocked out or chipped teeth. Keep your child away from handrails and other dangerous skateboarding thrills until they have enough practice to perform those moves safely.
Boxing, Martial Arts, MMA, etc.
These sports are full-contact and demand that you punch others in the face. Anyone who takes up these sports, even with a mouth guard, is pretty likely to experience some sort of oral injury. The good news is, a good habit of wearing mouthguards can keep your teeth and jaw pretty safe, even when taking a particularly rough blow to the face.
Any Game with a Bat or Stick
Baseball, hockey, lacrosse, cricket, you name it – If you need a stick or a bat to play, then you are much more likely to get accidentally struck in the face. However, the good news is many of these sports require the players to wear helmets and mouthguards for safety during game play. It’s during practice time that more accidents seem to happen!
Football
With any sport involving tackling, injury is pretty common. However, it used to be a much riskier sport years ago when the athletes neglected to even wear leather helmets (which didn’t do that much good anyway). Mouthguards had not even been invented back then, so football used to be a much more dangerous sport. However, kids these days are encouraged to wear both helmets and mouthguards to make this sport much less dangerous. This helps reduce the risk of football injury, especially regarding teeth! Make sure your child is wearing their mouthguard anytime they hit the field. That way, those tackles won’t be taking out any teeth as well.
Basketball
Basketball might be one of the most dangerous sports when it comes to teeth as none of the players are required to wear mouthguards. Even though there is no tackling in basketball, this sport is still extremely physical and dangerous, especially as the age range of the group increases. A rogue elbow or a ball moving a little too quickly for their reflexes can mean a knocked out tooth! If your child plays basketball, please do your best to make sure that they wear a mouthguard at every practice and game. This can prevent you from needing to make a few extra trips to the dentist during the year. If your kid plays recreationally with a referee on hand to ensure that everyone plays fair, teach your child that they can always leave the game play if it gets too rough or if they fear for their safety.
Contact Us
At Kruckman Family Dentistry, we believe that prevention is the best cure. While we would be happy to help you with a tooth that has been knocked out or chipped, we would rather just see you at our Waconia office for a routine cleaning! Learning the best ways to keep your child’s teeth safe, including wearing a mouthguard for most sports, is the perfect way to keep your dentist visits down during the year. If you need to schedule a dentist appointment, whether it be for a routine cleaning, cosmetic dentistry, or even our dental surgery procedures, then contact us today! Kruckman Family Dentistry is here to serve you and your family. Together, we can keep your smiles bright!