Metal Mouth Message Board

I am hoping to have Invisalign soon, however I hope someone may be able to answer a question.

Whenever I eat any fruit I always - as my dentist advised - wait for an hour before cleaning my teeth due to the fact that the acids in the fruit damage the tooth enamel. However, I understand with Invisalign you have to clean/floss your teeth immediately after eating and replace the Invisalign as they need to be in for as many hours as possible.

What happens then when you've eaten fruit - do you clean your teeth immediately and ruin the enamel - or leave the aligners out for an hour?

Hope someone can help.

I was a dental hygienist for 11 years before becoming a "stay-at-home" mom. If a patient asked this question, I'd give them the same advice I give to my patients who have morning sickness and want to brush right after vomiting: Dissolve half a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup of water a swish a mouthful around in your mouth. This will neutralize the acid and make it safe to brush.

Hi, that is brilliant, I'll definitely be trying that even before I get the Invisalign, thanks so much for taking the time to answer.

You're welcome.

Thank you so much for this advice! Useful info for before, during AND after Invisalign treatment.

I generally keep my aligners in when I eat and then brush after; however, yes some foods stain more like coffee.
Thank God, my ortho is allowing me to change aligners every 5 days, so they don't get as dirty.
Does anyone know if you can use a denture cleaner to clean the aligners.
Also, I am wondering how long the refinement process is?
My ortho told me that after I complete the aligners (I have 63 and on 43), there will likely be some more aligners to help refine.
I hope it's not long and wondering if anyone has experience with this?
thx.
PS: Although I keep my aligners in 22+ hours a day, I am really getting quite tired of these things and can't wait until I am done!