The first thing you are most likely to notice in someone is their smile. That shows how a smile determines other people’s perceptions of you. Dental problems like crooked teeth retract from your smile and may make you less confident. Many adults and teenagers postpone or avoid orthodontic treatment because they don’t like the idea of metal braces. The good news is that Dr. Kenn Kakosian offers other teeth straightening options like removal aligners, which are increasingly becoming popular for the following reasons.
Comfortable
Clear aligners are more comfortable to wear than metal or traditional braces. They are made of smooth plastic and don’t contain metal brackets that dig and cut into your lips and cheeks. Removable aligners are custom-made for your teeth and are made from high-quality resin, leaving you without any jagged metal digging into your mouth. If you have metal braces, you can try applying wax to the outside brackets, but the wax usually falls off in no time.
Better dental hygiene
One thing about removal aligners is that they do not interfere with your oral hygiene. Because they are removable, you can brush and floss your teeth as you would normally. While achieving alignment is the goal, you want your teeth to be as healthy as possible by the end of treatment. Daily cleaning, like brushing and flossing, is usually challenging with metal braces. The food particles that stick inside and around brackets are difficult to clean. As such, you may be at risk of gum disease or tooth decay.
Fewer dental visits
Traditional braces require frequent visits to the orthodontist for various reasons. For example, you may need to remove or replace a bracket, change wire size or tighten specific brackets. All these appointments add up to hours of you sitting in the dental chair during your orthodontic treatment. Additionally, these visits interfere with your daily routine; you may need to take some hours off your day at work or school to see your orthodontist.
But clear aligners eliminate the need for frequent visits to dentists. During the treatment duration, you will have a set of aligners to switch after every two weeks. These aligners are already planned and created, so there is no need for extra dental work. Even if you need to see your orthodontist, the visits will be much shorter and less intrusive.
No food adjustments
Invisalign allows you to eat and drink your favorite foods and beverages like before. These aligners are removable. Therefore, your food choice is not limited. But with metal braces, you should carefully select your foods lest the metal brackets snap off or the wires bend. Foods that are sticky, crunchy, chewy, and hard can cause the wires to bend. As such, you can’t eat gum, nuts, caramel, ice, apples, or corn-on-the-cob.
Although clear aligners allow you to eat anything you want, you should always remove them to avoid food particles from sticking inside. The only thing you can consume with your aligners on in cold water. After eating, brush your teeth or rinse with water before putting your aligners, so that food particles don’t get stuck between your aligners.
If you have misaligned teeth, consult your orthodontist at DentAlign NYC to know if you can benefit from Invisalign.
