Many adults
and teens who consider orthodontic treatments are interested in Invisalign
system. They like to get their teeth straight and beautiful without wearing
braces and come to Care Orthodontics to ask Dr. Phan about Invisalign. Here are the break downs of Invisalign pros
and cons that may help you as you make an informed decision whether this appliance
is right for you.
The pros of Invisalign - there are
many:
1)
The
aligners are invisible. With the
transparent plastic materials, most people will not notice that you are wearing
them so you can very much being discreet as going through orthodontic
treatment.
2)
The
aligners are removable. You can remove them if you feel too much pressure and
want to take a break from treatment. You
can be remove them for important social events such as date nights, board
meetings, wedding, photo shots, speaking engagement, etc.
3)
The
aligners are easier to brush and floss. Without the added apparatus in the
mouth such as brackets and wires, there are less food traps. Flossing with
Invisalign is an ease, the same as you do without any treatment. In comparison, flossing with braces required
using special flossing devices such as floss threader, water flosser or Waterpik. Whichever system that your wear, whether braces
or Invisalign, your orthodontist will recommend you to brush and floss daily to
prevent cavities and gum diseases.
4)
There
are less orthodontics emergency visits. Without many braces and tubes glued to
the teeth, there are less chance that they will come off and thus less
emergency visits.
5)
There
are no diet restrictions compared to braces.
With braces, you need to stay away from eating hard and crunchy
food. Hard food break glue around brackets
and cause them to detach. With
Invisalign, you have no diet restriction.
You can eat everything including hard, crunchy and sticky foods such as
apples, carrots, ices, nuts, hard chips, caramelized candies, chewing gums, etc.
The cons of Invisalign:
The cons
have to do with your compliance to treatment.
You must wear Invisalign aligners almost full time to get enough stimulation
and tooth movement. If you leave the
aligners out of the mouth long enough, your teeth will stop moving or not
moving enough. For treatment success, you
must wear the Invisalign aligners for your teeth to move.
- You must
wear the aligners 20-22 hours a day, leave out 2 hours to eat, brush, and
floss. If you tend to forget to put
aligners back on after eating, snacking or brushing, your teeth may not
experience enough force to move. Less time wear will lead to inadequate fitting
or non-fitting aligners.
- You need to remove aligners to eat. Most people complain that they don’t
get to snack enough during the day as it is a hassle to remove the
aligners to snack. The truth is
that you can eat, you just need to remove the aligners, snack, brush your
teeth and put the aligners back. It
takes a little bit of time, but possible to indulge in food. You should brush after each meal;
however, if you are in a crunch and don’t have time to brush, at least swish
water in your mouth for a minute to wash away most food before putting the
aligners back. This will cut down on the amount of sugar
and plaque to minimize cavities.
Just like anything in life, you must work and follow through
to succeed. Once you wear Invisalign,
you will figure out a way to make the appliances fit with your lifestyle and
routines. If you have further questions,
schedule for a consultation appointment with Dr. Nancy Phan.
Dr. Nancy
Phan is a Board-certified orthodontist and dedicated many years to bring out
the true beauty of your smile and strong bites. Visit our website at www.CareOrthodontics.com or call
Care Orthodontic today at 408-971-2885 to schedule an appointment.
