Many of our patients want to correct their bites and straighten their teeth. However, traditional braces can get in the way of your lifestyle or your precious pictures. This is why many people opt for Invisalign to straighten their teeth. Invisalign are clear aligners that slowly shift your teeth. Depending on your bite problem, you will use several sets of aligners that are custom-fit to your mouth. Rather than wearing metal braces that cement to your teeth, you can remove Invisalign daily.
Invisalign makes it possible to better care for your teeth while receiving cosmetic treatment. Many patients desire the convenience and comfort of removable aligners. If you have taken the steps to get invisible aligners, you need to know how to care for them. There are a few simple care options that you need to remember. Keeping your aligners clean and treating them well will help them last longer and protect your teeth.
You Can Eat and Drink What You Want
One of the many benefits of Invisalign is that you can eat and drink whatever you want. Importantly, you must take the trays out of your mouth while you are eating. This not only helps keep them clean, but this also lets the aligners keep their shape. If you eat with aligners in your mouth, you can warp the shape of the trays, making them ineffective. Additionally, you risk damaging your teeth and gums.
As long as you take the trays out of your mouth before eating, you can eat whatever you desire. Unlike traditional braces, you are not limited to what you can eat. For example, you cannot eat chips or popcorn with traditional braces because you may damage the metal or pop a bracket off of your teeth. However, you don’t need to worry about hurting your aligners as long as you remove them before eating. This also means that you shouldn’t chew gum with your Invisalign in your mouth.
Consuming drinks is a little more complicated than eating with Invisalign. Although, it is still a simple rule. If you drink any colored liquids, you must remove your aligners. For example, drinking coffee, tea, soda, or sports drinks requires you to take out your invisible trays. If you keep your trays in, you risk staining the aligners, which diminishes their invisible quality.
Preferably, you should only drink water with your Invisalign aligners.
Other Invisalign Care Tips
There are other ways you should take care of your Invisalign aligners. To reduce food particles, you should rinse your mouth with water before replacing your aligners. This will help reduce the number of bacteria that can build in your mouth.
Additionally, you should clean your Invisalign each night to remove any plaque or food particles. Make sure that you use a soft-bristled toothbrush to buff the trays gently. Using abrasives, i.e., hard a toothbrush or toothpaste, can leave scratches in the Invisalign trays. Tiny scratches leave room for bacteria to grow. Therefore, you should ensure that your Invisalign aligners are clean to protect your teeth and prevent bad breath and gum disease.