Sports Mouthguards 101: A Parent's Guide for Fall Season in Cherokee County

Fall tryouts start the same week as class — sometimes the very same afternoon. Cleats get bought. Shin guards get sized. Practice jerseys get laid out the night before. And somewhere in the rush between the sporting goods store and the first team meeting, the mouthguard — if it makes the shopping list at all — is usually the $6 one grabbed off a rack near the checkout line, tossed in the cart between the water bottle and the pre-wrap.

It's an afterthought for most families. It shouldn't be.

Athletes who skip a mouthguard in team sports like soccer, football, and basketball are twice as likely to suffer a mouth or face injury than those who wear one, according to the American Dental Association.

That risk isn't limited to football, and it isn't limited to the sports that require a guard by rule. In Cherokee County, fall means soccer, basketball, and competitive cheer are all in season at the same time — and every one of them sends kids to a dentist's chair for chipped, cracked, or knocked-out teeth each year, mouthguard or not.

Which Fall Sports Actually Need One?

• Football — the obvious one — mouthguards are required by nearly every league.

• Soccer — headers, collisions, and elbows cause a steady stream of dental injuries; not required, strongly recommended.

• Basketball — elbows near the mouth during rebounds are one of the most common causes of chipped front teeth in youth sports.

• Cheer and tumbling — falls during stunts carry real dental and jaw injury risk, even though it doesn't look like a contact sport.

None of this is meant to scare anyone off the field — sports are worth the risk, and a twenty-dollar accessory is a small price for the peace of mind that a bad fall or a stray elbow won't turn into an emergency root canal three days before picture day.

Heading into tryouts? flexbook.me/Sunrise · (470) 863-1169

Stock vs. Boil-and-Bite vs. Custom

The type of guard matters almost as much as whether your child wears one at all. Here's how the three main options actually compare, side by side:

Type	Cost	Fit & Protection	Best For
Stock (off-the-shelf)	$5–$15	Loose, one-size-fits-all; lowest protection	Occasional or backup use only
Boil-and-bite	$10–$30	Moderate, molded at home in hot water	Recreational leagues, budget-conscious families
Custom-fit (dental office)	$150–$400	Exact fit, thinner, most protective	Competitive sports, kids with braces

When Store-Bought Is Genuinely Fine

We see this play out every August: two kids on the same rec team, same collision risk, different guards. One does fine with a fifteen-dollar boil-and-bite because Saturday-league soccer is genuinely low contact. The other, headed into a travel season with three tournaments a month, is better served by something built to hold its shape through an entire fall. Custom guards earn their cost for competitive travel teams, any collision-heavy sport played multiple seasons a year, and kids currently in braces, where a custom guard can be shaped around brackets in a way a store-bought one simply can't.

Care and Replacement

Rinse after every use, air-dry before storing, and wash weekly with a soft toothbrush and mild soap — never toothpaste, which is too abrasive. Most guards need replacing every season, and sooner if it's melted on a car dashboard in Georgia summer heat, which happens to nearly every family at least once.

If a Tooth Does Get Knocked Out

Even with a mouthguard, accidents happen — and how the next few minutes are handled matters almost as much as the guard itself. If a permanent tooth is knocked out, pick it up by the crown, never the root, and rinse it gently without scrubbing. If it's possible, try to reinsert it into the socket. If not, keep it in milk or the child's own saliva and get to a dentist within 30 minutes — the odds of saving the tooth drop quickly after that window closes. Baby teeth are different: don't try to reinsert those. Just control any bleeding and call us right away.

Common Questions

Can my child wear a mouthguard with braces?

Yes — and it's especially important, since impact can drive brackets into the lips and cheeks. A custom guard shaped around braces gives the safest fit as teeth shift during treatment.

What age should kids start?

As soon as they're playing organized contact or collision sports — often age 5 or 6. Fit matters more than age.

Can siblings share one?

No. A guard molded to one child's teeth won't protect another properly — an ill-fitting guard can do more harm than none at all.

How do I know if a mouthguard actually fits?

It should stay in place on its own without being clenched, allow normal speech and breathing, and not need constant readjustment during play. A child who's always pulling it out to talk usually has one that doesn't fit — and an ill-fitting guard tends to end up forgotten in the gym bag.

Whatever you land on — stock, boil-and-bite, or custom — the best mouthguard is always the one that's actually in your child's mouth at kickoff, not sitting at home in a gym bag.

Ask about a custom fit at your child's next visit → flexbook.me/Sunrise