How to clean your Invisalign braces

Cleaning your Invisalign braces is essential to keeping it free from discolouration and breakage. You’d clean your teeth, so why would you not clean your invisible braces? As the reputable Bolton dental practice, we are, we’re going to share with you how to clean your Invisalign trays!

How to clean your Invisalign

Generally speaking, the best method is to soak them in a denture cleaner or Invisalign cleaning crystals. They need a bit of a scrub, too, so set aside a soft-bristled toothbrush solely for your aligners and brush them. Soak and brush them once a day to remove dried saliva that could cause cracking, food particles that cause decay and bad breath, and other dried debris that might cause them to discolour or smell. Because you need to remove them to brush your teeth when you wake up, it might be worth doing this is in the morning while you eat breakfast and get ready.

Clean them when you wake up

Because you need to wear your Invisalign braces for 20 to 22 hours per day, you should be wearing them when you sleep at night. Remove them when you wake up in the morning and clean them in the way detailed above, but also make sure you clean your teeth. Don’t replace your aligners in your mouth until you’ve cleaned them and brushed your teeth after breakfast, otherwise food debris and bacteria will be incubated against your teeth and could cause decay and bad breath. Bacteria love warm, wet, nutrient-rich environments, like your mouth and teeth services, so make sure you clean your teeth to remove as much of them as possible.

Rinse your Invisalign braces regularly

Invisalign can be removed for social occasions and meal times, which is great, but remember to rinse them with clean and cold water before storing them away or putting them back in. This prevents saliva and food debris from drying to the plastic, which may cause cracks and breakages and not to mention discolouration.

Always remove them to eat

Invisalign don’t limit your diet at all purely because you can remove them to eat, but it’s vital that you don’t try to eat with them in. Drinking water is fine, but your aligners aren’t equipped to deal with the pressures of biting and chewing. They could crack, break, or become stained by food particles. Even drinking coffee and tea with your Invisalign braces in could lead to a sort of brownish staining, so it’s best to stick to water or simply remove them.

Always clean your teeth when you remove them

After you’ve removed your aligners for meal times and snacks, you can replace your Invisalign back in your mouth after you’ve cleaned your teeth. If you don’t then you can risk incubating sugars and bacteria against your teeth in an environment that they will breed it. This will lead to bacteria eating away at your protective enamel and multiplying, jeopardising your dental health. Also, this will avoid foul smells and deposits developing as the food won’t be trapped in the aligners.

For trusted aftercare, maintenance, and cleaning advice, trust your Invisalign braces dentist in Bolton. Book your initial consultation with Harwood Dental Care today on 01204 304568.