Mouthguard Cleaning

Go to Grow The Game for more great articles. 

Q. My son just tosses his mouthguard into a front pocket of his bag, which is cleaner than the rest of his bag but still not pristine. My wife says we need to keep it in a baggie or box, but given how many kids pick them up off the floor and put them back in their mouths, I say don’t worry about it. 

A. Hockey players do tend to act as if cleanliness is next to sissiness (ever heard one brag about how bad his bag smells?). But worrying about the cleanliness of your child’s mouthguard is far from being overprotective. To prevent illnesses that range from minor mouth infections to serious conditions such as meningitis, the mouthguard should be cleaned daily and stored in a container with airflow. (The Cleanguard Ultraviolet Mouthguard Sanitizer shown here eliminates bacteria in 10 minutes.) We recently heard from a parent who spent $61 for a doctor visit and prescription copay to cure a mouth yeast infection that might have been prevented with a mouthguard that starts, and stays, clean. The time, money and hassle might have been saved for the low cost of $10-$20.

Editor’s Note: Thank you to Kelly Anton for this story.