Wearing a mouthguard is a great way to protect your teeth from injury during sports or nighttime grinding. This is especially important if you have certain dental restorations like braces, dental veneers, or fixed bridges. Read on for the top reasons why wearing a mouthguard is important!
Prevent Tooth Damage
Perhaps one of the most important reasons for wearing a mouthguard is to protect the teeth from injury/tooth fracture during sports or nighttime grinding. Although sports mouthguards and nightguards vary slightly in their structure, they are both designed to protect the teeth and prevent damage. While playing sports, the teeth can become damaged due to facial impact. The teeth can also become damaged as a result of regular grinding or clenching while sleeping. Mouthguards act as a protective shield that ultimately prevents this damage.
Prevents Soft Tissue Damage
Braces, when properly fitted and maintained, can help keep your teeth in excellent condition. However, if you play sports while wearing braces, the gums and lips on the inside of your mouth may be damaged. Not only that, but playing sports can cause injury to your lips, gums, and/or tongue. Wearing a special mouthguard can prevent soft tissue injuries, and even damage to your braces.
Decrease Snoring
One reason why some people wear a nightguard is to help prevent them from snoring. Snoring occurs as a result of blocked or obstructed airways, and can be caused by poor sleeping posture, allergies, nasal congestion/infections, obesity, and even alcohol consumption. Nightguards work because they hold the jaw in place while you sleep which allows your tongue and throat muscles to relax without blocking your airway. Not only does this decrease snoring, but it can also help in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.
Prevent Teeth Clenching/Grinding
Another reason why it’s important to wear a mouthguard at night is to prevent or decrease teeth clenching and grinding. This is because nightguards actually position the jaw so that it is harder to grind the teeth together. While this may not solve the problem entirely, it usually decreases the amount of clenching and grinding. It can also help to relax the jaw muscles and decrease stress on the jaw joint, which can also prevent jaw problems like temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD).
When you wear a mouthguard, it is able to protect your teeth from injury during sports or nighttime grinding. With the help of special nightguards and sport mouth guards, many people are able to decrease their risk for tooth damage, soft tissue injuries, snoring, and even teeth clenching!
Dr. Admar holds dual certificates — a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) in 2010 from India and a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) in 2014 from Canada. He is now a full time practicing dentist in Kamloops where he provides a variety of services, including emergency dentistry. Dr. Admar spends hundreds of hours in continued dental education to stay up to date in cosmetic and implant dentistry and he has achieved several advanced qualifications.
