One of the trickiest parts of a realignment with a set of braces is in keeping them clean and bacteria free as your teeth are slowly straightened out into a nice neat smile.
To make maintaining your braces a little easier, here are a few pieces of advice for those with invisalign in Kings Hill that may be struggling with keeping their clear aligners clean.
Lightly brush it once every second day
The first and most important tip we can provide you with is to just brush the braces often. Ideally you should aim for at least once every second day to ensure that any plaque, tartar and bacteria that could be building up on the brace is thoroughly scrubbed off.
To keep the plastic covering sterile we recommend that you mix a miniscule amount of bleach into a cup of water then lightly brush this solution into the surface of your clear aligners. Make sure to keep your brush strokes small and gentle as pressing too hard can lead to the bristles thinning out the plastic coating over time.
At One Smile Oral Care our team of experienced dental technicians will be able to provide you a wealth of information on how you can take better care of your braces and how to keep them clean easily with your toothbrush.
Rinse whenever it’s removed
Another top tip for patients of invisalign in Kings Hill is to give the mouth guard a brisk rinse under some cold water whenever it’s taken out. Although you should be wearing a brace for at least 22 hours a day as instructed to by your dentist, you are still allowed to pop it out briefly now and then.
This can be for the likes of cleaning your teeth, eating meals, taking a break from wearing it all day or performing maintenance on it. Each and every time it’s take out you should be rinsing it as this will clear off any dried in saliva or leftover plaque that could become sites for bacteria growing.
Don’t soak it overnight
Leaving your brace overnight in a glass of listerine or another cleaning solution may seem like a good way to keep it clean, but this can actually damage your braces. This is because the chemicals in some cleaning solutions can damage the plastic covering as it eats away or things the material over time.
If you have to soak it, do it only for a few minutes and in cold water to make sure the brace is unharmed.
Keep it in a safe container
Every time you take your braces out to clean them you should make sure that they are stored in a safe place. Putting them in your pocket or on your nightstand allows bacteria to come into contact with them, so it’s strongly recommended that you store them in a hard bodied container. Doing this keeps them safe from accidental damage and safe from contact with surfaces contaminated with bacteria and germs.
Just a few of these small changes to your cleaning routine should be enough to keep your braces looking crisp, clear and healthy as your smiles straightened out. For more cleaning tips on how you can keep your braces spotless, just pop by the practice for a chat with our team.