Athletic Protection
Why Do Young Athletes Need a
Custom Mouthguard for
Contact Sports in Calgary?
Sports-related dental injuries are among the most common dental emergencies in children and teenagers — and most are entirely preventable with a properly fitted mouthguard. A custom sports mouthguard from Royal Oak Smiles provides far superior protection to over-the-counter boil-and-bite options, fitting precisely over the teeth and distributing impact forces to prevent chips, fractures, and knocked-out teeth across all contact and collision sports.
Why Custom Matters
What Makes a Custom Mouthguard
Genuinely Protective for Your Child?
Precise Impressions
Accurate dental impressions capture the exact contours of your child's teeth so the mouthguard fits snugly — not loosely like a boil-and-bite guard.
Lab Fabrication
The guard is fabricated from high-grade EVA material in the thickness appropriate to your child's sport and age — balancing protection and comfort.
Perfect Fit
At fitting, we verify the guard seats securely, allows easy breathing and speaking, and does not impede performance during play.
Annual Replacement
As children's teeth change — especially during growth spurts and when losing baby teeth — we recommend annual remakes to maintain a protective fit.
Accepting new patients. Open 7 days a week in Royal Oak, NW Calgary. Call to book →
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
About Sports Mouthguards in Calgary
Any sport with a risk of contact to the face, head, or jaw should involve a mouthguard. This includes hockey, ringette, football, rugby, basketball, soccer, martial arts, wrestling, gymnastics, skateboarding, and baseball. The Canadian Dental Association recommends custom mouthguards for all contact and collision sports. Royal Oak Smiles provides guards for children and teens participating in any sport where a blow to the mouth is possible.
Custom mouthguards from Royal Oak Smiles are fabricated from precise dental impressions of your child's teeth. They fit snugly over every tooth, absorb and distribute impact evenly, and do not shift during play. Store-bought boil-and-bite guards are thicker, bulkier, fit inconsistently, and restrict breathing and communication — making children less likely to wear them consistently. A custom guard provides meaningfully better protection and compliance.
Royal Oak Smiles recommends replacing a child's sports mouthguard annually. Children's teeth change significantly year to year — especially during the transition from primary to permanent teeth and through growth spurts. A guard that no longer fits provides inadequate protection and may shift the bite. Annual replacement also replaces material that has degraded from compression and wear over a season of use.
Some Alberta dental insurance plans include coverage for custom sports mouthguards — particularly when prescribed for children in contact sports. Coverage varies by plan. Royal Oak Smiles can submit a claim on your behalf to determine your entitlement before the guard is fabricated. Call (403) 374-6161 to confirm your child's coverage.