Invisalign is a user-friendly, discreet method of aligning your teeth, but there are rules to follow and behaviors to avoid while undergoing this treatment, so you get the best results possible. The dos and don’ts of Invisalign are easy to remember and honor.
1. Do Wear the Trays Almost 24/7
Invisalign is not an around-the-clock alignment method like conventional metal braces that are attached to your teeth, but it’s close. It’s recommended that you wear the trays 20 to 22 hours a day for the most desirable outcome. That means you have about three or so hours to fit in your meals, snacks, and cleaning of your teeth and trays. It’s do-able.
2. Don’t Eat with Aligners In
To meet that 22-hour wear instruction, you may be tempted to pop a snack in your mouth while Invisalign is in place. You may even try to eat an entire meal with the trays on your teeth because it isn’t always easy to remove Invisalign, especially if you’re wearing attachment or your mouth is feeling tender after changing to a new set of trays. But if you don’t remove the aligners for meals, you run the risk of breaking or staining them.
3. Do Change Your Trays at Night
Some patients find that when they’re changing to a new set of trays, the best time to do so is before they go to bed. That allows them to wear the aligners for a solid seven or eight hours without needing to remove them, and you can hopefully sleep through the worst of any tightness or discomfort.
4. Don’t Drink Coffee, Tea, or Soda All Day
The only thing you should ever eat or drink while wearing your Invisalign trays is water, which is harmless to the trays and even rinses them off a little. If you drink coffee, tea, or soda throughout the day, this is a habit you will need to break. Any beverage can stain your trays or cause odors and the whole point of wearing clear trays can be destroyed by the wrong beverages.
5. Do Brush Your Teeth Often
When you are in the process of aligning your teeth, it’s necessary to brush them more often and as meticulously as possible. Invisalign frees you from the tedious job of getting in and around brackets and wires, but it is important that you brush and floss after every meal before you put the trays back in place and carefully brush around any attachments too. You don’t want to leave anything behind or give decay a chance to develop between your trays and your teeth.
6. Do Always Carry Your Case
Going out to eat? Hitting the coffee shop? Wherever you’re headed, make sure your Invisalign case is always in your pocket or bag. The last thing you want to do is wrap your trays in a napkin and accidentally throw them away. It’s not recommended that you stuff the trays in your pocket either. You only wear your trays for two weeks at a time – needing to replace aligners multiple times is not an investment you want to have to make, plus your treatment will get off track every time trays are lost or mishandled.
Get Invisalign from Fort Lauderdale Dentist Near Me
The do’s and don’ts of Invisalign are easy to follow. Find out if you’re a good candidate. Schedule a consultation with Dr. Charmaine Johnson, Fort Lauderdale Invisalign provider at Premier Smile Center, and learn about our special offer.
Everything I have had done at Premier Smile Center has been top-notch. The treatment I received was thorough, precise and extremely professional. I never felt like just another patient because they took the time to listen to my concerns. They addressed my issues and we agreed on the treatment plan together.
The staff is very friendly, warm and extremely knowledgeable. I felt relaxed and comfortable knowing I chose the right place to get the dental work I needed. Dr. Johnson is very humane and very knowledgeable, and she does amazing work. I like the friendliness and honesty of the whole practice. I was not confident with my smile, in fact I was very self conscious and rarely smiled. Premier Smile Center has changed all that. My smile is one of the things I like the most.