Tags – What You Can Drink Invisalign
So you’ve decided to start your Invisalign journey and are now on the road to a lasting, healthy beautiful smile.
Like with any other treatment, you must wear and use your aligners as your dentist recommends.
But one of the most common questions that patients usually ask, is if they are allowed to drink tea, coffee or fizzy drinks whilst they’re wearing Invisalign.
According to the manufacturer, you should always remove your aligners whenever you want to enjoy a hot or cold drink.
So overall, yes. You can enjoy any sort of liquid you like.
That said though, there are some considerations to keep in mind.
And if you follow healthy drinking practises, your new smile will shine and you’ll receive maximum effects.
Remove Aligners
It’s always a good idea to remove your aligners and store them in its case before drinking anything.
The main reason being, some beverages can cause stains, such as red wine or coffee.
The other reason is, fizzy drinks or energy drinks can result in a build-up of acid underneath your Invisalign trays, which can very quickly lead to tooth decay and damage to your natural teeth.
Moreover, if the drink you’re about to have is hot, the heat can cause the plastic aligners to change shape, therefore they will not be effective at moving your teeth.
As such, always try to remove your aligners when you can, but don’t forget to put them back in after drinking as you’re supposed to wear them for at least 22 hours a day.
Drink Lots of Water
We all know the health benefits of drinking lots of water, and for your teeth, this is the best drink of choice.
For Invisalign wearers, drinking water can help to take away any leftover food particles from your teeth, and even help to remove any sugar build-up from underneath your aligners.
In addition, the fluoride found in tap water can even reduce the number of cavities you get throughout your life by up 25%
When drinking water, it’s better for it to be cold or at room temperature.
However, if on those cold days you are looking to drink hot water, then take your trays out to stop them from warping.
Tea or Coffee?
Regardless of whether you prefer tea or coffee, it’s never a good idea to drink either of these while your Invisalign trays are in.
As mentioned earlier, hot drinks can potentially warp the plastic, which may mean you have to replace your trays much sooner than you think.
In other words, if you are a hot drinks lover, wait for it to cool down if you’re going to drink it when you’re wearing Invisalign.
Nevertheless, it’s been advised to avoid drinking coffee while wearing Invisalign as this can stain the trays.
Can You Drink Fizzy Drinks with Invisalign?
Fizzy drinks when wearing Invisalign is a no-go.
So, always remove them when you fancy a fizzy drink and drink with a straw.
By drinking with a straw, this helps to decrease the risk of tooth decay, which occurs from a combination of sugar and bacteria in your mouth.
To explain it briefly, when sugar and bacteria come together, it creates an acid that eats away at your teeth; even if it’s a diet drink.
And if you’re wearing your trays, this problem becomes worse as they will trap the sugar and acid, speeding up the decaying process.
What About Alcohol?
Like coffee, red wine and dark beer can also cause staining.
But in addition to this, cocktails with sugary ingredients can increase the risk of tooth decay, especially if it gets trapped beneath the aligners.
So again, it’s advised to remove Invisalign before drinking alcohol.
However, if you are going to drink alcohol without taking your trays out, consider these tips:
- Use a straw: using a straw means the liquid will not hit your teeth and aligners as much, compared to if you were to drink straight from the glass.
- Choose clear over colour: vodka and gin are the least sugary spirits, so choose these and mix with soda or tonic water, rather than fruit juices or cola
- Rinse in between: when drinking, make sure you consume plenty of water in between as this will help rinse your teeth and remove sugar and pigments
Wrapping Up
When you’re wearing Invisalign trays for 20 – 22 hours a day, it can be a struggle to avoid your favourite drinks.
And sometimes, you may be in a situation where you can’t remove them, for example if you’re at an event.
To maintain necessary hygiene, here’s a quick wrap up of what we’ve discussed:
- Always take aligners out before drinking fizzy drinks, hot drinks or alcohol
- Take your Invisalign case everywhere with you so you have somewhere to store them while your drinking
- Rinse your teeth with water before putting your Invisalign back in to avoid oral hygiene problems
- Let any hot drink cool down first to prevent your aligners from changing shape
Want to know more? Please contact us today.
In the meantime, take a look at our Invisalign treatment here.
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