Will a mouthguard protect my teeth?

• I've heard differing reports. I currently wear a half shield with a shock doctor visor. I wear the halfie because I reffed this winter. Reffing is over, and I plan to play a lot of drop in this summer, I'm wondering if I should switch to a full shield. Some people have told me a good mouthguard like mine will protect my teeth from being knocked out. Others have told me mouthguards are so your teeth don't slam together if you fall. I especially want ot hear from anyone who lost a tooth while wearing a mouthguard, or was wearing one, took one to the mouth, and did not lose teeth.

• Answer:

  Most commercial mouth guards are primarily to prevent concussions, not prevent tooth loss. My dentist provides me with a mouth guard that serves both purposes at no charge. My understanding is that it would be relatively expensive otherwise. They took a mold of my mouth like they did when I had braces and custom built it to my mouth. It is slightly larger than most store models and my name is molded into it. I took a puck to the mouth last season with it and it worked, I didn't lose any teeth and I didn't suffer a concussion. I did end up with about a dozen stitches. No offense towards the folks here but your best bet would be to call your dentist and ask for a recommendation. They are not going to steer you wrong.