{"id":681,"date":"2018-06-01T11:49:11","date_gmt":"2018-06-01T16:49:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dentistryforkids.info\/?p=681"},"modified":"2024-11-20T18:36:57","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T18:36:57","slug":"kid-athletes-protecting-their-teeth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/2018\/06\/kid-athletes-protecting-their-teeth\/","title":{"rendered":"Kid Athletes & Protecting Their Teeth"},"content":{"rendered":"

At Pediatric Dentistry, we love seeing our kid patients involved in sports! It is important that kids are involved in physical activity everyday to keep them fit and growing properly. However, no matter the sport, it\u2019s important that your kids take the correct safety precautions to keep their teeth safe. Here are some things to consider for when your child is on the court or field and how it can impact their dental health.<\/span><\/p>\n

Accidents Happen<\/span><\/h2>\n

It should be no surprise that your kid should be wearing a mouthguard if they play a contact sport like football or hockey. When anybody gets hit or tackled, whether a child or adult, their first instinct is to clench their jaw to brace for the impact. <\/span>The Journal of the American Dental Association<\/span><\/a> reports that sports related injuries make up 13-39% of the 5 million dental avulsions every year. That is why we recommend that you go as far as having your child wear a mouthguard for any sport they are involved in. Because as any parent knows, accidents happen. Whether it is in basketball, volleyball, or baseball; kids are bound to accidentally run into another kids or object without meaning to. An unsuspecting blow to the jaw or face can knock out a tooth cause some serious pain. To play it safe, make a mouthguard part of every uniform!<\/span><\/p>\n

Using Mouthguards Properly<\/span><\/h2>\n

Mouthguards are an amazing tool for lowering the risk of your child having a dental incident during sports. As a person bites down on one, the energy of the bite is displaced all throughout the rubbery texture of the mouthguard. However, mouthguards need to be fitted properly. Otherwise they are ineffective and can even make a situation worse. Buy a fitted mouthguard that you can mold to fit your child\u2019s teeth pattern. If a mouthguard fits loosely in your child\u2019s mouth, it a hard bite can actually cause more dental damage.<\/span><\/p>\n

Avoid Sports Drinks<\/span><\/h2>\n

Any parent knows that kids love sports drinks like Gatorade for their fun colors and delicious taste. However, these <\/span>sugar-filled sports drink are actually detrimental to the dental hygiene<\/span><\/a> of a child. The acidity of these types of drinks will break down the enamel of your child\u2019s teeth and cause decaying, even at a young age. Although they might not agree, the best way to keep your child hydrated is with cold, purified water. They can even drink water that contain electrolytes with supplements of magnesium, potassium, and calcium for quicker absorption and hydration.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pediatric Dentistry Can Help<\/span><\/h2>\n

Drs. Barsetti & Whittemore are able to fit your child with a custom mouthguard to keep their teeth sage all throughout the year. To learn more about this, <\/span>contact us today<\/span><\/a>! If you are new to the Des Moines area and are looking for a reliable, caring pediatric dentist, come visit Pediatric Dentistry! We have been serving the area for decades with locations in Ankeny and Des Moines. If your child is a new patient, <\/span>please fill out a patient history and consent form<\/span><\/a>. We look forward to seeing you!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At Pediatric Dentistry, we love seeing our kid patients involved in sports! It is important that kids are involved in physical activity everyday to keep them fit and growing properly. [ more <\/i><\/a> ]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1613,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"How to Protect Your Kid's Teeth If They Play Sports","_seopress_titles_desc":"Take some of the stress out of watching your kid play sports. These are the things to consider in order to keep your kid's teeth safe on the court or the field. ","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=681"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1227,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681\/revisions\/1227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dentistryforkids.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}