Oral Care With Invisalign®
Crafton Dental offers both traditional braces as well as Invisalign for straightening your teeth and improving your smile. With the invention of Invisalign, straightening your teeth is now much more discreet. The aligners are so discreet that most people will never be able to tell that you are wearing them in the first place. In addition to being virtually invisible, Invisalign offers many unique benefits over traditional braces. One of these benefits is easier oral care.
However, just because oral care is easier, that does not mean that it can be neglected. Taking good care of your mouth while wearing Invisalign is important for maintaining your oral health and ensuring a beautiful smile once your treatment is complete.
How to Maintain Oral Hygiene
One of the major benefits of Invisalign is that you can brush and floss your teeth just like you always do. This means that you should be brushing and flossing regularly every single day. Ideally, you should also brush after each meal as well. This will help to prevent food particles and stains from collecting inside of your aligners. It also helps to keep the amount of plaque and bacteria against your teeth to a minimum.
Your mouth is not the only thing that needs proper care while undergoing Invisalign treatment. You also need to take care of your aligners. Ideally, you should also brush your aligners after each meal using a soft-bristled toothbrush and antibacterial soap. Do not use toothpaste and brush gently to avoid scratches.
We understand that brushing is not always possible. At the very least, the aligners should be rinsed out after each meal. Cleaning after each meal helps to remove plaque, bacteria, and other debris. It would help if you also soaked your aligners regularly. This can be done using Invisalign’s specialized cleaning crystals.
One of the great things about Invisalign is that they can be removed when you eat. This means that many of the same food restrictions applied to braces are not applied to Invisalign. However, there are some things to keep in mind. You should avoid very hard foods like hard candies, crusty bread, and harder fruits and vegetables. These foods can put pressure on your teeth, which can affect your treatment.
Hard or sticky candies can leave residue on your teeth. If you want to enjoy hard fruits and vegetables, such as carrots or apples, make sure to cut them into smaller pieces. It is important to avoid chewing gum, as it can tug your aligners.
A few other things to keep in mind. Your aligners need to be worn between 20 and 22 hours each day. If you like to snack frequently or you like to sip on your coffee all day, you may need to reconsider your habits. Each time you eat or drink, the aligners need to be taken out and then they, and your teeth, need to be cleaned before putting them back in.
It would help if you did not eat or drink anything with your aligners in your mouth. Doing so could ruin your aligners or cause them to become stained. Every time you want to eat or drink, you should remove them from your mouth. Just make sure that you clean your aligners and your teeth before you put them back into your mouth.
Contact Us
While Invisalign does make oral care easier, it does not mean that oral care is any less important. If you have any questions or concerns, call our Columbia dental office at (410) 381-0900 today.
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