April is National Facial Protection Month This month several professional organizations(dental specialists) including The American Association of Orthodontists are recognizing April as "National Facial Protection Month". Their message is clear: avoid sports injuries by wearing protective equipment. It seems that the first step to facial protection is just putting on your gear. This is directed towards all active individuals including children, parents, weekend warriors and professional athletes. From skateboarding to rollerblading, baseball to volleyball, karate to gymnastics, downhill skiing to bicycling, all sports are contact sports. From face shields, to eye shields, dental specialists advocate wearing protective gear to save face. The top 10 ways to save face: 1. wear mouth guards for any contact sport 2.wear a helmet 3.wear protective eyewear 4. wear a face shield 5. be aware of family pets (each year roughly 44,000 people incur face injuries from dog bites) 6. buckle up with seatbelts and carseats 7. keep babies and toddlers safe 8. be alert...as a spectator, keep an eye out for foul baseballs, soaring hockey pucks, etc. 9. use common sense 10. to learn more visit www.braces.org, www.aaoms.org, www.aapd.org. Vinson Orthodontics provides all of our patients participating in these sports with mouthguards!! Please be sure to ask when you are in for your next appointment if you need one!!!