Remember, when it comes to aligners there’s difference between cleaning and rinsing. Rinsing your aligner may make them look clear, but you also have to be aware of the unseen bacteria that can build up which should also get cleaned properly.

Following are some basic cleansing processes for aligners cleaning:

-       Rinse  them with water every night

-       Brush them with soft-bristle toothbrush and gentle, clear liquid soap to remove any debris or food particles that have accumulated during the day.

-       Rinse thoroughly after brushing

-       Always store your aligners in protective case when not in use.

You can use following accessories for cleaning your aligners:

Cleaning foam:                

Spray small quantity of this foam on your inner side of aligners, brush it gently with soft bristle toothbrush and rinse thoroughly.

Cleaning tablets:

These tablets contain cleansing agent like sodium sulphate. You just have to put one tablet in water, it dissolves and then soak your aligners in it.

You should avoid following cleansers for cleaning as they are simply too harsh or can cause damage to your aligners:

-       Denture cleaners

-       Mouthwashes

-       Scented soaps (which can easily start to taste bitter), soaps containing dyes.

-       Toothpaste

Refrain from using hot water for cleaning your aligner trays.

Brush used for aligner should be soft bristled one because you don’t want your aligners to have scratches.

Toothbrush has soft fine bristles arranged in circular manner with around 10-12 tufts on it.

It looks different from the one used for cleaning teeth where the bristles are arranged back to back in horizontal manner.

You should regularly clean your aligners so that they remain bacteria free. While you are brushing your teeth every morning also clean your aligner trays which Is also important for oral hygiene.

Rinse your aligners every time you remove them.

Soak them in water or cleaning tablets for at least once a day to clean off any dried food or plaque.

Brush and floss your teeth before you put your aligners back in.

Always keep aligners in protective case when not in use.

Yes, you can floss your teeth while aligner treatment. In fact it is recommended to floss your teeth even if you are not taking any treatment. Only reason for this is to maintain proper oral hygiene as it combat harmful bacteria that affects your teeth. Regular brushing and flossing increases the longevity of your teeth.

Aligners trays cover your teeth for nearly the entire day that is for 22 hours which creates an environment for bacteria to gather and grow. This can lead to cavities or plaque or tartar accumulation on your teeth. Hence it is important to floss and clean after every meal when you have aligners. If not after meal, floss at least once daily to remove any harmful material from your mouth and teeth.

You should always remove your aligners from your teeth when eating or drinking. Same goes for chewing gum, if you want to eat it remove aligners and then eat it. Rinse your mouth thoroughly and then wear aligners again.

Chewing gum has following benefits:

Cleans teeth surface:

Chewing gum increases saliva production which removes any plaque accumulation or food debris and also improves your speech.

Reduces discomfort:

When shifting to new aligner first few days can be a bit painful. Chewing gum helps decrease pain due to tooth movement.

Freshens breath:

Mint flavored chewing gums have a natural stimulant “mint” in it which freshens your mouth and ultimately get your brain functioning on higher level.

Accelerates treatment:

Chewing action activates and stimulates your body’s bones and ligament cellular response which creates faster tooth movement. 

Nicotine from cigarettes have negative effect on healing and regeneration of bony defects.

It delays the bone remodeling process that is bone deposition and removal and promotes changes beneath your gum tissue which facilitate the growth of pathogens.

Technically, it is possible to smoke while undergoing aligner treatment since they are removable. However it is not recommended to do so due to following reasons:

Smoking can stain aligners:

It causes staining of teeth as well as aligners if teeth are not rinsed or brushed properly.

Affect your treatment:

Although aligners are designed to be removed when eating, Flossing and brushing your teeth, and for smoking, they should be worn for 22 hours per day.

Wearing them for less than 22 hours may interfere and slow down your treatment. If aligners are removed too often for smoking it might have impact on your treatment and take longer time for your teeth for proper alignment.

Affects oral health:        

Smoking is not just bad for aligners but also for your teeth and overall oral health.

Nicotine and tar from cigarettes can stay on your teeth and gums for long time which can cause tooth discoloration, decay, gum diseases and tooth erosion.

Tooth movement is characterized by sequential reactions to the forces applied that make changes in the tissue surrounding your teeth and are related to bone remodeling by removal of bone from pressure side and deposition on the side of force application. Consumption of alcohol creates imbalance in this process of bone removal and deposition directly affecting bone repair. Hence alcohol consumption can delay your treatment duration.

You can drink whatever you want with aligners but only when you are not wearing them. It is important to take your aligners out to drink anything except plain water. Following are the reasons why:

-       Aligners are made from thin and clear plastic material. Drinking tea or coffee or any hot beverages can cause warpage of plastic. The effectiveness of aligners depends on the fit. If the plastic deforms and fit is improper, teeth will not get enough force for its movement which can compromise your results.

-       Drinking something sugary or acidic with aligners still in mouth or drinking and immediately putting them in mouth without rinsing can lead to cavities or decay or erosion of your tooth enamel.

-       Drinking colored drinks like cocktails or soda or coffee or tea can stain your aligners so remove them first then have a drink, rinse your mouth thoroughly, clean aligners properly and wear them again.

Following are the ways which can help you prevent drinking issues:

-       Take aligners out and put them in protective case before having a drink.

-       Drink lots of water so that any sugar, acid and plaque will wash off.

-       Before putting your aligners back in, swish some water around in your mouth and then spit it out after having a drink.

Brush your teeth using toothpaste in morning after meals and snacks and before going to bed.

Our mouth harbors various bacteria out of which some are good and some are harmful.

These harmful bacteria feed off the starch and sugar you eat and drink. They then release acids that eat away your tooth enamel and form a sticky substance, we call it as plaque.

This can lead to decay. This is why you should consume drinks like soda, sweetened iced tea, juices, cocktails and sports drink in moderation while you are still undergoing orthodontic treatment.

Drinks like coffee, tea or red wine, may not have as much sugar as say, soda, but they have tendency to stain your teeth as well as aligner trays.

Following drinks you can take while undergoing aligner treatment but yes you should keep in mind to remove them and clean it after having your drink and wear them again:

-       Milk,

-       Smoothies,

-       Fruit juices,

-       Lemonades,

-     Protein shakes

It is not unusual for smokers to develop stains on their teeth ranging from yellow to brown. This is result of nicotine and tar present in cigarettes which stains your teeth.

The same thing goes for aligners if you are smoking while undergoing aligner treatment.

When aligners are still in while smoking, nicotine and tar can quickly stain your aligner trays. Even if you remove trays when smoking and doesn’t clean or rinse mouth after that, then nicotine and tar that lingers in your mouth can stain your teeth as well as your aligner trays.

It is possible for smokers to successfully undergo aligner treatment, but it is best that they avoid smoking during treatment to ensure desirable results.

It is not at all painful but it might hamper your treatment progress.

Aligner trays need to be worn for 22 hours a day for it to be effective. Taking them off and putting them back in very often can interfere with the effectiveness of your treatment.

Smoking can cause your aligner trays to stain. Nicotine and tar from cigarettes can linger on your trays and cause discoloration.

If you end up breaking your aligners, first thing to remember is that you should not use any superglue or household glue or any non-toxic glue stick to try to fix or reconstruct the tray because many of them are toxic and are not used for orthodontic appliances.

In that case if your aligners break, you should contact your orthodontist as soon as you notice a crack on it.

If the tray broke after 9-10 days of usage of that set then, your orthodontist could recommend you to move on to next set of aligners. But if you have just started wearing the new set, you might have to shift back to the previous set until you receive replacement trays. This is done to ensure that the tooth movement doesn’t go waste and is maintained with the previous set of aligners.

If you lose an aligner, wear your previous set of aligner to prevent your teeth from moving back to its original position. While you do this, contact your orthodontist for a visit where you may either need another tray or move ahead with next tray of aligner.

If you have just started using the aligner, you might need a new one, in that case your orthodontist will make some impression of your teeth and get new aligners fabricated. It may take 7-8 days for fabrication of new aligner meanwhile you are supposed to wear the previous aligner till the new one comes.

In other case if you have already worn that aligner for more than 10 days and then lost it, then you can switch to the next set of aligners.

To avoid losing of aligners, you can try following ideas:

-       Always keep them in protective case after removal.

-       Never put them on napkin or tissue paper.

-       Keep the previous set of aligners just in case of any emergencies.

If your crown or bridge is dislodged of has come out, they can be fixed again on your teeth and you can resume wearing your aligners.

But in case if you are willing to go for new crown or bridge to be made on your teeth, then we would suggest to delay it after your aligner treatment is done, because this procedure involves modification of your tooth’s size and shape which can affect the fit of your aligner trays.

So it is usually recommended to do teeth modification procedures after completing your aligner treatment. Those include:

Crown and bridges

Root canal procedure

Veneers and laminates

      Restorations.

Getting sick is never enjoyable. Especially if you are trying to straighten your teeth, you have to manage aligners while nursing yourselves back to health.

Wearing aligners 22 hours a day during such times can be hectic but at the same time you will still want the results of your aligner treatment.

If your illness is mild- a cold or flu, you can keep wearing it, but keep following tips in mind:

Stay hydrated:

When you are sick, your body dries out faster, in that case drinking water not only replenishes your water supply but also flushes out toxins from the body and absorb the necessary nutrients required for healing.

Use of sugar-free medications:

To avoid staining of your teeth and aligners, avoid cough syrups which have added colors in it. Sugar free medicines will prevent sugar deposition on your teeth and creating decay.

Remove aligners when necessary:

If you have upset stomach, or have vomiting, in that case you can wear aligners overnight so that no relapse occurs and teeth are maintained in its position.

Clean your aligners often:

It is important to clean aligners frequently because you do not want germs or bacteria buildup on them.

As aligners are easy to remove, it gets easy to maintain good oral hygiene.

To take proper care of your teeth you will need a good toothpaste to avoid any tooth cavities or gum diseases.

One of the best things about clear aligners is that they are almost invisible. When you wear them, no one will know and your teeth will look the same as always. You will want them to look their best even when you wear aligners. A whitening toothpaste will help, it will make your teeth look whiter and bright and give you a confidence boost.

To prevent tooth decay while aligners treatment, it is recommended to use fluoridated toothpaste. It is beneficial to use it before going to bed. Brush your teeth but don’t rinse and then wear your aligner trays. This is because the fluoride from toothpaste stays on your teeth and helps in mineralization.

Yes, you can use mouthwash to maintain your oral hygiene. Mouthwash is a liquid rinse containing cleansing and freshening minerals like fluorine to freshen your mouth and cleanse hard to reach areas of your teeth. To clean the bacterial build up and plaque in your mouth, it has a content called chlorhexidine. It can help fight bad breath by washing off bacteria. It can also relieve your pain from any gum diseases you might be suffering from.

Mouthwash is the excellent supplement to brushing and flossing. The liquid consistency offers an advantage in reaching all parts of your mouth.

If you feel that mouthwash alone will be enough to maintain oral hygiene, but that’s not true. Along with use of mouthwash you should follow your routine of brushing and flossing also at least twice a day.

During aligner treatment some of you may feel alteration in taste due to mouthwash, in that case use it alternate day but don’t stop using it.

Now that you have your new set of aligners, and you are on your way towards getting new and improved smile. You also want to be careful of how to avoid bad breath. For that you need to keep your teeth as well as aligners clean.

Maintain good oral hygiene by brushing and flossing regularly when you take out your aligners and remove them every time you have your meals or drink other than plain water.

But another important part of your routine should be proper cleaning of aligners every time they are removed.

Aligner tablets can be used to clean your aligners. You simply have to drop one tablet in a cup of water and let it dissolve for a minute or two. Soak your aligners for 3 minutes to get fully clean. Take them out, rinse them thoroughly with water and put them back in. this routine should be followed regularly so that your oral hygiene as well as aligners are maintained properly.

If aligners are not cleaned properly they can become breeding ground for bacteria. Therefore it is extremely necessary to regularly clean your aligner trays.

Aligner cleaning foam deep cleans your aligners giving you a fresh feel in your mouth and helping you feel more confident and happy with your look.

It is fast and very easy to use. Just squeeze some amount of foam on inner side of trays, place them in your mouth and you are good to go. It takes little effort and can be done in quick hassle-free manner. It contains hydrogen peroxide which kills bacteria and is very gentle for your aligner trays.

Aligners wearing schedule is very important as it directly affects your progress of treatment. You have to make sure to wear aligners for 22 hours daily during treatment. Remove them only while routine brushing and flossing of teeth and during meals. Every set of tray is changed after 15 days or 2 weeks. You can try following ideas to keep track of your schedule:

1) Write it down in your planner or calendar. Mark the starting date of your treatment, then after every 15 days note the number of set you are required to change. And once you are done tick it so that it avoids confusion.

      2)  Set a reminder on your phone for every 15 days with note to change set.

The length of aligner treatment and number of aligners required depends on the severity of the case.

As you might expect, patients with more alignment issues will have longer treatment time and more sets of aligners (up to 50) than people with minor issues and less sets of aligners (20-30).

You might be thinking how to identify the set number?

U for upper and L for lower aligner is marked and number next to that signifies the number of aligner. For example L 10 is the 10^th lower aligner.

The number of aligner out of total provided is shown on the front of each packet as well as on each individual aligner.

Additionally, if your case needs refinement sets of aligners (to give final touch to your teeth) they are designated as R and next to it is number of refinement aligner. For example- L-R1 is the lower 1^st refinement aligner.