Your kid just made the travel team. Or they’re deep into summer league. Or tryouts are two weeks away — and their dentist just said they need braces.

Before you decide to put off treatment until the season ends, here’s what you should know: orthodontic treatment and athletics are completely compatible. Thousands of competitive athletes — from middle school players to college and professional-level competitors — wear braces or Invisalign without missing a beat.

You don’t have to choose between the sport they love and the smile they deserve. You just need the right information and the right gear.

If your child plays any contact or collision sport — football, basketball, soccer, wrestling, lacrosse, field hockey, martial arts — a mouthguard is non-negotiable. With braces, it’s even more important, because a hit to the mouth can drive brackets into the lips and cheeks and cause real damage.

Here’s the catch: standard boil-and-bite mouthguards don’t work well with braces. They’re designed to mold to your teeth, and brackets get in the way. They can actually adhere to the brackets, making them dangerous to remove.

What you need is an orthodontic mouthguard — a guard specifically designed to fit over braces with enough room for the brackets and wires. These are softer, larger, and don’t require molding to the teeth. You can find them at most sporting goods stores, and we’re happy to recommend brands we trust.

For Invisalign patients: aligners should be removed before contact sports. Your child can wear their regular athletic mouthguard over their teeth as normal — and put the aligners back in after the game.

For sports like swimming, running, tennis, gymnastics, baseball, softball, and golf, the risks are much lower. Braces don’t interfere with most non-contact athletic activities.

Swimming is completely fine — chlorine doesn’t affect brackets or wires. Just remind your child to rinse their mouth after being in the pool.

For Invisalign athletes in non-contact sports, aligners can usually stay in during competition. Your child should use their judgment — if a sport involves any risk of a hit to the face, the aligners come out and a mouthguard goes in.

Loose or broken bracket: Don’t try to fix it yourself. Cover the area with orthodontic wax if it’s irritating the cheek, and call our office. We’ll get you in as soon as possible to reattach it.

Poking wire: Use the eraser end of a pencil to gently press the wire down, or cover it with wax. If it’s genuinely sharp or causing pain, call us.

Dental emergency (knocked-out tooth, significant mouth injury): Call us and go to the emergency room if needed. This is rare, but a properly fitted mouthguard dramatically reduces this risk.

For travel teams and tournaments that keep athletes away from home for a few days — pack a small orthodontic kit: wax, a travel toothbrush, floss picks, and the office phone number. Being prepared means a minor issue doesn’t derail the whole trip.

Not at all. Braces don’t affect speed, agility, endurance, or skill. Once your child adjusts to the mouthguard — which usually takes a week or two — they won’t notice it.

Most helmets are designed to fit over any type of oral appliance. If there are specific concerns about a particular helmet or sport, bring it up at your consultation and we’ll talk through it.

Yes: now. There’s rarely a perfect window, and waiting for an off-season that never really comes means delaying treatment unnecessarily. We’ll work around your child’s schedule and make sure they’re set up for success from day one.

Technically yes, but we recommend removing them for lap swimming or water polo — the risk of losing an aligner in the water is real, and replacement aligners take time to fabricate.

We treat athletes every day. At your consultation, we’ll talk through your child’s specific sport, ask about their season schedule, and make sure our treatment plan fits their athletic life — not the other way around.

We’ll also talk you through exactly which mouthguard to get, how to handle common bumps and scrapes, and what to do if something happens at an out-of-town tournament. Our goal is for your athlete to feel fully prepared and confident from the first appointment.

Active kid? We’ve got you covered. Come talk to us about how to make orthodontic treatment work around sports, music, or whatever your child loves. Schedule your free consultation at TW Orthodontics today.