The Benefits Of Invisalign

While the desire for straight teeth and a beautiful smile have been around since the ancient Egyptians, the technology for straightening teeth has made significant strides in just the past couple decades. The most notable advancement has been the introduction of Invisalign clear aligners in 1999. Today, more than 3 million people have successfully used Invisalign to straighten their teeth.

Here are some of the benefits of Invisalign over metal braces.

Comfort & Style

Made from smooth plastic, Invisalign aligners are comfortable to wear day and night.  There are no sharp brackets or wires to cut your tongue or lips on.  Invisalign aligners are virtually invisible when worn. For patients concerned about the aesthetics of traditional metal braces and who are self-conscious about wearing them, clear aligners will boost your confidence and keep you from missing out on the things you love doing. You should aim to wear your aligners 20-22 hours each day; this gives you some time to remove it for eating, cleaning, and for any special activities like playing sports or going on a date!

Convenience

Unlike traditional braces that are a permanent fixture on your teeth, Invisalign can be removed for short periods in order to clean the aligner and the underlying teeth and gums. This allows you to brush and floss as normal. Your teeth can be cleaned without any of the special tools that are needed with metal braces.  The ability to thoroughly clean all tooth surfaces means less staining and less decay that metal braces can cause.

Eating

With braces, you have to abide by several food restrictions or risk damaging the expensive hardware. Crunchy, chewy, sticky, sugary – the list is quite extensive, and quite depressing, especially for teens. With Invisalign there are NO food restrictions. You simply remove the aligners at meal time and enjoy all your favorite foods. Brush and floss as soon as possible before replacing your aligners to avoid plaque buildup. While you can drink while wearing Invisalign, you may have some of the liquid seep in between your teeth and the aligners. If it’s just water, there’s no reason to concern yourself unless it bothers you. But if it is soda or another sugary beverage, it’s important to remove and rinse your aligner after drinking.

Adjustments

Your Invisalign treatment plan will come with a series of aligners designed to take you through the entire process.  Invisalign allows you to simply put a new aligner in every two weeks.  Whereas, an orthodontist adjusts metal brackets every 6-8 weeks.  Your orthodontist will still want to see you regularly to ensure your teeth are moving as they should be, but these visits lack adjustments.

Periodontal health or gum health

Clear aligners are better for periodontal health than fixed appliances as shown by this meta-analysis JADA Jiang 2018. They are also better in terms of decalcification or white spot lesions and decay. Anyone with average to poor oral oral hygiene will likely do better with aligners, but that same group of people are also less compliant with the aligners.

Bauer Dentistry & Orthodontics Is Proud To Offer Invisalign

Are you interested in seeing whether you or your child is a candidate for Invisalign?  Come discover the benefits of Invisalign for yourself!  It’ so easy to make an orthodontics appointment so that we can do complimentary consultation and see if it’s the right choice for you!