Invisalign has come a long way over the years and over 17 million smiles have been transformed globally.
That means there really is no stopping aligners. Whether you have gaps, overcrowding or your bite isn’t right, our Invisalign Coventry service can work for you.
The best way to find out, is to book in for a free consultation with our team, and they can go through the options with you!
How long does Invisalign take?
Invisalign does tend to work quicker than traditional braces. This is due to changing your aligners every 7-10 days, so you have a continuous movement of the teeth.
With fixed braces, the movement is uncontrollable, so we have to wait for 6 weeks between appointments, so we can ensure the bone and ligaments around your teeth have settled once the movement has stopped.
Where as with aligners, we know exactly how much movement each aligner will produce, due them being digitally planned and printed. This means we can move the teeth at a slower, but continuous rate.
Obviously, everyone is different depending on the severity of their teeth and what movements are required. We would typically expect treatment to take up to year.
Our orthodontic team can give you a more accurate idea once we see you for an Invisalign consultation.
How does Invisalign work?
Invisalign works in a very similar way to traditional fixed braces. If you think of a fixed brace, you typically have a bracket fitted to your teeth, with a wire running between. This wire is what applies pressure to the brackets, to guide your teeth into the correct position.
With Invisalign, we bond attachments (which are blended to the same shade as the rest of your teeth) to your teeth, which act as the ‘bracket’. When you wear your aligner, this then acts as the wire to apply pressure to the attachments. You will have a series of aligners to wear, with each one being in a slightly different position, so your teeth move with each aligner week by week.
Can you eat with Invisalign?
We recommend you take your aligners out to eat and for certain drinks for a few reasons.
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So you can still enjoy the food you eat, without having your aligners in.
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Eating with the aligners can cause them to stain and discolour.
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Certain foods may increase your risk of decay, so keeping your aligners in when eating foods with a high sugar content may trap the sugars on your teeth.
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Certain drinks may also have the same effect if you keep your aligners on while consuming them. Only drink water while wearing your aligners.
How to clean Invisalign braces?
The best way to clean your aligners, is to use Invisalign’s cleaning crystals or sterilisation tablet specifically for dental appliances.
This will keep your aligners clean and fresh, while killing any bacteria and dissolving any build up.
Try to avoid brushing your aligners with your toothbrush and toothpaste. The reason for this is, toothpaste is abrasive and will roughen the surface of your aligners and retainers causing them to look scratched and cloudy.
You can also get ultrasonic cleaners, used with a solution, which are also good for cleaning your aligners and retainers.
How many hours per day do I wear Invisalign?
The recommended wear per day is 18-22 hours per day.
We suggest taking your aligners out for 1 hour per meal, so you can have a break and still enjoy your favourite foods and drinks. But it’s also a lot easier to keep track of your hours of wear too, and you should be hitting 21 hours wear per day.
You can also download the Invisalign app, which has lots of useful information and a wear tracker, so you can log when you have taken your aligners out. This will give you an overall average time of wear, so it’s easier to keep track of how long you are wearing them.