How to Care for Your Invisalign Aligners: Best Practices for Optimal Results

Caring for your Invisalign aligners is one of the most important things you can do throughout treatment. This will ensure that your treatment is safe, hygienic and effective. By keeping your aligners clean and protecting them against damage, you can set yourself on a course for success.

There are a few important rules to remember when you are going through the treatment programme. These include:

• You absolutely need to wear your aligners for 20-22 hours per day.

• You’ll have to remove your aligners to eat and drink.

• You can only drink cold or tepid water while wearing your aligners.

• You’ll need to clean your aligners at least twice a day.

• You might want to rinse your aligners in water every time you remove them.

• Wear indicators will let your dentist know if you have been wearing them for long enough.

With these rules in mind, let’s look at some of the things you can do to care for your aligners and your teeth while you are going through treatment.

Caring for your Invisalign aligners

Since you’ll be wearing your aligners for 20-22 hours per day, you will need to take good care of them to prevent bacteria build up. The aligners will trap bacteria against your teeth and this could lead to dental problems. The easiest way to overcome this would be to make sure you clear your teeth and your aligners at least twice per day.

We recommend using aligner cleaning tablets morning and night while you are brushing your teeth. This will help to prevent bacteria build up that could lead to staining, bad smells, and a bad taste in your mouth.

Caring for your teeth is also essential. This is why you should prioritise brushing and flossing twice a day throughout treatment. Use an electric toothbrush to make sure you get all of the tooth surface and don’t leave anywhere for bacteria to hide.

Preventing stains on your aligners

One of the main reasons that individuals turn to Invisalign is that they want a discreet treatment plan. The last thing you want is for your nearly invisible aligners to become discoloured or stained.

Daily cleaning will help to keep stains away, but there are extra steps you can take to help protect your aligners.

The first step is to avoid drinking anything other than water while wearing your aligners. It’s tempting to have a quick sip of coffee or a diet coke while you’re wearing them as it’s far easier than taking them out. But if you do this, you run the risk of warping or staining your aligners. It could also lead to a build up of bacteria which could damage the enamel on your teeth.

You should also avoid using certain products to clean your aligners. Mouthwash can leave your aligners with a blue or purple tinge, depending on the mouthwash that you use. Instead of soaking with mouthwash, use a special aligner cleaning tablet.

Brushing your aligners with an abrasive toothpaste could also lead to staining. This could scratch the surface of your aligners and make them look dull. It will also provide a breeding ground for bacteria. If you need to brush your aligners, use a soft toothbrush and non-abrasive toothpaste.

Preventing damage to your aligners

Another risk factor for Invisalign treatment is the risk of damage to the aligners. The most common cause of damage is patients forgetting to remove their aligners before enjoying a hot drink. The aligner material is thermo-sensitive, which means it will lose its shape when it is exposed to heat.

If this happens, your aligner will no longer work as it won’t be able to apply pressure to your teeth in the correct way. To avoid this, you should always remove your aligners to eat and drink anything other than cold or tepid water.

Another common cause of damage is forgetting to remove them before eating. This will be uncomfortable and biting down on your aligners with the full force of your jaw could lead to it becoming misshapen.

If you grind your teeth at night, you might need to wear a night guard over your aligners to prevent damage. And finally, you should also be aware of the potential risk of damaging your aligners when you take them out. We recommend putting your aligners in a case to avoid damage and to keep them clean.

Ready to talk about treatment?

The first step to a straighter smile with Invisalign is to book an appointment. Get in touch today to secure your spot.