How to clean your clear aligners?
Cleaning your clear aligners every day, even a few times a day is incredibly important. They get dirty quickly.
If you don’t clean them constantly you will risk developing cavities. Not cleaning them is like not brushing your teeth.
Why?
Because when you wear them, saliva doesn’t reach your teeth like it usually does. After eating, before bed, in the morning these are the important times to brush your teeth and clean your clear aligners.
It is important that you do not use hot water, toothpaste, nor mouthwash or any harsh chemicals or heat which can damage your aligners.
- Soap. The absolute best way of cleaning them is with a clear, unscented gentle soap. One soap that we think is great is the fragrance free Dial Clean+Gentle hand soap. You might think using soap is weird or will taste bad, but it won’t if you rinse them properly, just like a fork you just washed doesn’t taste like soap. Simply use your toothbrush with a little soap, brush them and properly rinse them with lukewarm or cold water.
- Peroxide. Using peroxide is another great way to clean and refresh your clear aligners, simply mix half peroxide with half water and soak them for about 15 min, not any longer. Peroxide kills bacteria. After that rinse them properly and brush them with your toothbrush.
- Foam. Using the provided whitening foam not only whitens your smile but also does a great job at cleaning your clear aligners. Place foam inside your clean clear aligners right after brushing and flossing your teeth and wear right away. Use twice daily. Do not leave aligners with foam for more than 15 minutes.
Here is a routine one of our clients told us he does.
“Every morning I clean my aligners with water and soap, I actually leave the soap on for a few minutes while I shower then I rinse them and I’m ready for the day. After lunch I simply brush my teeth and rinse the aligners with cold water, sometimes I don’t have time to brush my teeth but at the very least I always rinse my mouth with water. At night I usually just brush my aligners without anything, but I know that using soap would be much better. Once a week I cover my aligners with the foam they gave me as I feel this truly makes them incredibly clean.”
Sequence32 will also provide you with a little refresher spray you can use after lunch for on the go cleaning.