During winter, Americans love sports and activities like skiing, hockey, and basketball. But how does the rest of the world stay active when the weather gets cold?

Snow polo began on a frozen lake in Switzerland in 1985, and the world championships are still held there each year. It’s a fancy affair with gourmet food, majestic mountain views, and even more majestic horses. The game itself is played just like polo, except the horses wear specially fitted horseshoes that help them grip the ice.

Snow polo creates one oral health risk that isn’t found in normal polo — chapped lips! If you’ll be out in winter weather, make sure you bring lip balm with SPF 30 to protect your lips from the cold weather.

1. Eliminating everyone on the other team with snowballs
2. Capturing the other team’s flag

Yukigassen is popular all over the globe, with annual tournaments held in Finland, Norway, Australia, Japan, and many other countries.

Although Yukigassen seems like a childhood dream come true, it’s still important to be careful and protect yourself. Dense snowballs, or ones that accidentally include ice, can lead to minor teeth, jaw, and face injuries.

If you do participate in any hard-hitting winter games, make sure to wear a mouth guard and take other recommended safety precautions. Mouth guards can protect you from cracked or broken teeth, cuts to your tongue and cheeks, and other damage.

From fast action to adorable animals, this Norwegian sport has a little bit of everything! Skijoring combines skiing with dog sled racing. Each racer wears cross-country skis and is pulled by an animal, most often three dogs or a horse, across an awesome outdoor obstacle course. Despite being a Norwegian pastime, skijoring can also be found close to home — the Whitefish Skijoring competition is held annually in Whitefish, Montana.

It’s important to stay hydrated when you spend long periods of time outside, even in the winter when you aren’t sweating as much. Hydrate with water, which is sugar-free and helps clean your mouth, instead of sweetened sports or energy drinks.  

Snowkiting is when a snowboarder is pulled along a course or along a trail by a wind-propelled kite. It’s like waterskiing, except you do it over frozen ground instead of near a sun-drenched beach. A newer — and potentially risky — activity, snowkiting can be found in snowy countries such as Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, and Canada, among others.

Make sure you know the risks before you try snowkiting! Thrill-seekers may love the adrenaline rush if they practice under careful conditions, but the sport is risky and can lead to head or jaw trauma from falls in the snow or from collisions with obstacles on the course.

Winter is a sport and smile-filled wonderland — you just need to know where to look! Use safety equipment and maintain your oral health so you can keep playing and smiling all season long.