April is National Facial Protection Month

Dr. Wilson and the whole team at Wilson Orthodontics wants to remind parents, coaches and athletes to play it safe as they prepare to suit up for recreational and organized sports.

A child’s mouth and face can be easily injured if the proper precautions are not used while playing sports.  In fact, according to the Center for Disease Control, more than half of the 7 million sports- and recreation-related injuries that occur each year are sustained by youth as young as 5 years old.

Last year, the National Youth Sports Safety Foundation forecasted that more than 3 million teeth would be knocked out in youth sporting events – yet, in a survey commissioned by the American Association of Orthodontists, 67% of parents admit that their child does not wear a mouth guard during organized sports. This raises a question: if mouth guards offer a simple and relatively inexpensive solution to help dramatically decrease the risk of oral and injuries, why aren’t more kids wearing them?

“As a member of the American Association of Orthodontists and a sports lover, I want to help make sure my patients and their teammates are properly protected from sports-related injuries to their teeth, mouth and faces. Simple and relatively inexpensive protective sports gear – such as mouth guards – can make a big difference in reducing or preventing oral injuries” says Dr. Wilson.

Parents are encouraged to contact us about the right mouth guards for their young, active athletes, and to urge coaches to require that young athletes wear their mouth guards at every practice and every game.

Dr. Wilson is a specialist in orthodontics with offices in Gainesville, Flowery Branch and Cleveland GA.
Covering Atlanta, Gainesville, Hoschton, Dacula, Alpharetta, Decatur, Mobile, Roswell, Lawrenceville, Jefferson and Cumming.

Wilson Orthodontics 1220 Sherwood Park Drive, NE Gainesville, GA 30501

Tel: 678-971-2461

National Facial Protection Month

As April is National Facial Protection Month, we at Wilson Orthodontics want to share some helpful tips on choosing a mouth guard.

When selecting a mouth guard the most important thing is fit. It should stay securely in place during your activities and you should be able to breath and talk comfortably.

There are three basic categories of mouth guards.

1. Off the Shelf Guards; these are relatively inexpensive and are preformed and come ready to wear.

2. Boil and Bite Guards; these are a step up from the off the shelf guards because you'll get a better fit by boiling to soften the material and then biting into it to form it around your teeth.

3. Custom Mouth Guards; these are the best and most expensive type and usually come from your Dentist. They require impressions of your teeth and are custom made just for your bite.

People with Braces can only wear one kind of mouth guard it's specially made so that it protects the teeth and mouth from injury that could be caused by the braces if hit, while not forming to the teeth since the teeth are constantly changing while in braces.

Here at Dr. Wilson's office we offer our patients mouth guards free of charge!

Without proper protection you greatly increase your chances of injury, so come visit us at Wilson Orthodontics for your very own mouth guard!

--Pam, Orthodontic Assistant

Yes it's true "April Showers Bring May Flowers;" however, did you know that it also brings "National Facial Protection Month"? The American Association of Orthodontics recommends the "Top 10 ways to Save Face". Notice that the first one is to wear a mouth guard!

Dental injuries are the most common type of injury sustained during sports activities. It is estimated by the American Dental Association that mouth guards prevent approximately 200,000 injuries each year in High School and College football alone!

Should you experience a facial injury and a permanent tooth is knocked out you can pick the tooth up by the crown of the tooth--not the root--and rinse it clean with water or milk; but do not store it in water store it only in milk!

Recent studies have shown that the best chances of saving the tooth is to have it safely and properly placed back into the socket within a window of time between 5 minutes to 1 hour. So you should see your Dentist as soon as you can!

However, if you should knock out a baby tooth, you can leave it out; oh, but don’t forget to put it under your pillow for the Tooth Fairy!

You get one set of permanent teeth, so take care of them!

Have fun, stay active, but be safe and guard your teeth and protect your Smile; especially the one we at Wilson Orthodontics help you create! And if you need a mouth guard, remember we give them to our Wilson Orthodontics patients for free!

--Pam, Orthodontic Assistant