Sports Mouth Guards

If you play a sport or participate in a recreational activity where injury may occur, we recommend that you be fitted for a sports mouth guard. Sports mouth guards are extremely important appliances for protecting your entire oral region from traumatic injury and helping you maintain a healthy smile. To make your appointment with our doctors and learn more about sports mouth guards in San Jose, California, please contact Cheer Dental at 408-437-1111.

Most sporting organizations now require participants in sports or recreational activities to wear mouth guards. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry is a particularly strong advocate of using sports mouth guards. Athletic mouth protectors help to protect your teeth and reduce the amount of force transmitted during a traumatic impact, reducing the severity and the likelihood of injuries such as:

• Concussions
• Cheek lesions
• Gum and soft tissue injuries
• Jawbone fractures
• Lip lesions
• Neck injuries
• Tongue lesions
• Tooth fractures

There are 3 main types of mouth guards available to meet your needs:

• Stock mouth guards – Stock mouth guards are one-size fits all mouth guard. They are cheap, quick to locate at sporting goods stores, and easy to fit. Dentists do not recommend this type of mouth guard, as it provides only minimal protection and obstructs proper breathing and speaking.
• Boil and bite mouth guards – Made from thermoplastic, these sports mouth guards are easily located at most sporting goods stores. They are fit to your mouth by immersing the device in hot water to make it pliable, and then pressing it on the teeth to create a custom mold. Boil and bite guards are more expensive than stock mouth guards, but offer more protection, feel more comfortable in the mouth, and allow for easier speech production and breathing.
• Custom mouth guards – Custom mouth guards offer the greatest degree of protection possible for your mouth. Your dentist takes an impression, from which he or she then constructions a custom mouth guard. While this type of mouth guard is more expensive and takes longer to fit, it is more comfortable, orthodontically correct, and fully approved by dentists.

Call our practice today for more information about sports mouth guards.