Custom-fitting sports guard for everyone engaging in contact sports!

Dr. Gordon Tam • August 22, 2019

Are you protecting your teeth with a custom-fitting sports guard?

The professional sports players are wearing protective device in their mouths during games. That is the custom-fitting sports guard. It spells the importance of wearing a sports guard to protect your precious teeth. If the professionals are wearing it, we should be wearing it too.

Teeth are vital for anyone at any age. Teeth allow us to eat and chew, speak properly and smile with confidence. At any point of time, we need to pay attention to maintain and protect them, not to mention exposing our teeth to potential risks during sports.

What is a sports guard?

A sports guard is a piece of equipment that people wear to protect their teeth, lips and tongue from getting injured or damaged through contact sports impacts or accidents or inter-arch stress during their activities. The advantage of wearing a sports guard during any physical activity or contact sports also gives you peace of mind to perform better without worrying about sustaining oral injuries.

There are different types of sports guards available in the market, some are sold over-the-counter, but we strongly encourage you to get the customised sports guard that is specially designed for any individual.

Who needs a sports guard?

According to the studies, more than 200,000 injuries are prevented annually in the United States by the use of sports guards. However, it is also estimated that more than 5 million teeth are lost through sports activities every year in the United States.

So it is strongly advised for anyone who is active in sports to get one!

Do kids need to wear sports guards?

Yes. It is recommended for anyone who is engaged in contact sports to get a custom-fitting sports guard to protect their teeth intact during any accidents or impacts on the face.

It is an awesome feeling to have a great passion for active sports such as rugby, basketball, soccer, and other contact sports like Taekwondo, Judo and wrestling. To be able to excel in these contact sports, many would do their best to chase the balls to score a goal and engage all out with their fists.

Passion is cultivated from a young. It is a common sight to see parents bringing their children to the field on weekends for rugby, soccer and basketball. It is also a familiar sight to see parents panicking over their children sustaining inter-arch or external facial injuries.

Not only for the children, but also for anyone actively engaging in sports, particularly contact sports, we strongly advise you to get your teeth protected by a sports guard. The custom-fitted sports guard helps to minimise or cushion the impact of facial injuries, especially pertaining to the mouth area.

But… as kids are growing and still changing their baby teeth to adult teeth, they tend to outgrow the sports guard. Once they feel that the sports guard is not fitting well, it is time to change. More frequent replacements are required for kids than for adults.

However, this investment is worth it. It’s a small price to pay compared to risking their adult teeth getting damaged/injured during impact.

A good Customised Fitting Sports Guard

A good customised sports guard is designed to absorb impact from internal forces from interarch stress through weight lifting to external forces from contact sports.

The more fitting the sports guard, the better protection it will provide.

The function and protection of the customised sports guard is from the outside in.

Constructed a multi-layer (three-layer)
Softer inside, harder shell
Comfortable to wear with softer lining within (Base layer flexible)
Provide good protection with a harder external shell to absorb any impacts (Reinforcement layer, Hard)
Cover layer (Outer shell, flexible and comfortable)

Not all sports guards provide adequate protection!

In the market, there is a ‘boil-and-bite’ (single-layer) product where the guard is softened in hot water. The user has to bite on it to get an impression of the teeth. It is made of thermoplastic material; it is difficult to make any adjustments and allows only one-time fitting. This type of guard is bulky, making talking and even breathing difficult. It provides little protection to the designated purpose of a sports guard.

Single layer
Bite on soften material to get an impression of the teeth
Made of thermoplastic material
Difficult to make any adjustment
Only allow one-time fitting
Bulky, making talking and even breathing difficult
Provides little or no protection
Provide a false sense of protection
Ill-fitting affects athletes’ performances

Get your custom-fitting sports guard with us now

While we are doing our part to help you fix your dental issues, there is one thing that you can do to help yourself by protecting your teeth.

In Smile Design Dental Practice, we often fabricate custom-fitting sports guards for kids as well as active adults. We will first take an impression of your upper and lower jaw, then sent to the dental laboratory to produce. There will be a fitting session to make sure that the sports guard fits you.

You can choose from a wide range of colors and you can individualise your own sports guard with your name incorporated in it. Parents no longer get confused over mixing up the kids’ sports guards anymore.

For more information and consultation, please contact Smile Design Dental Practice at +65 6463 8588.

To serve you better, we are available by Appointment Only.

Please contact us to schedule for an appointment.

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