North Texas Dentistry Volume 9 Issue 6 2019 ISSUE 6 DE | Page 19

as they sacrifice so much time and money
to represent their country.
“Most of these athletes are not wealthy.
They put their lives on hold to be that
medal winner. That’s pretty cool and
quite an honor to help them,” she says.
Texas A&M College of Dentistry (formerly
Baylor College of Dentistry) in Dallas is a part of
Texas A&M University and Texas A&M Health Sci-
ence Center. Founded in 1905, the College of
Dentistry is a nationally recognized center for oral
health sciences education, research, specialized
patient care and continuing dental education.
Learn more at dentistryinsider.tamhsc.edu or
follow @TAMUdental.
Kathleen Green Pothier is communications coor-
dinator at Texas A&M College of Dentistry. She
previously worked at Positively Proofed, where she
wrote and edited content for corporate clients, pub-
lications and motivational speakers. She also was
a writer and editor at The Dallas Morning News,
Houston Post and Beaumont Enterprise. Pothier
has a journalism degree from the University
of Nebraska.
were made to protect the jaw and
prevent the upper teeth from bouncing
on the lower teeth. Extra care was given
to trimming the guards to allow team
communication.
Like lugers, skeleton athletes use small
sleds but instead race face down and
head first. Bobsledders ride in specialized
sleighs, either in pairs or in a group of
four. The sports dentists adapted the
mouthguards for each different ice sport.
While mouthguards are serious business,
the dental protectors were made with
Team USA logos and came with a patri-
otic-themed color selection: red, white,
blue, gold, and purple, just for fun.
“Some girls wanted purple,” she says.
“The world champion chose the gold
one.” Of course.
The athletes have about two years to get
comfortable with their new mouthguards
before the 2022 Winter Olympics in Bei-
jing, China. During that time, if they find
their mouthguards need tweaking, these
team professionals will be ready.
McNew’s attendance as a volunteer den-
tist at the winter games is yet to be deter-
mined. She does know, however, that it’s
strictly voluntary; if she goes, the tab will
be on her. That means her respect for
these daredevil athletes goes even further
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