Why You Don't Want to Skimp on Wearing Your Invisalign Trays

When you commit to aligning your teeth with the revolutionary Invisalign® system, you choose the most flexible and discreet orthodontic system. Unlike braces, you don’t have appliances cemented to every tooth. Your system is removable, easy to clean, and requires no modifications to your diet.

Choosing an experienced Invisalign provider is your first step if you haven’t started your smile alignment journey. Allure Dental Care of Maple Lawn can answer all your questions about Invisalign and its teeth straightening advantages. Call or click online to book your appointment.

The Invisalign system

For those unfamiliar with the Invisalign system, it starts with a three-dimensional scan of your mouth. This digital information serves as a basis for your treatment plan. Using computers, your Invisalign specialist maps out how your teeth must move to meet your treatment goals.

Your alignment plan converts to a series of steps, starting where your teeth are now and ending with your ideal smile. Each step along the way becomes one of a series of Invisalign trays. You’ll wear these trays for 20 or more hours per day, taking them out to eat, drink, and clean.

Made from the specially designed SmartTrack® material, Invisalign trays are clear but tough, able to nudge your teeth gently into place. After wearing a tray for about two weeks, you’ll move to the next one in sequence. Cycling progressively through them, you’ll complete your treatment in as little as six months.

How your teeth move

You may think of your teeth and jaws as stable and immobile, but without some give and elasticity, they wouldn’t work as an adaptable system. Both Invisalign and other orthodontic systems make use of this ability.

The first Invisalign tray closely resembles your teeth as they are at the start of treatment. However, it’s not an identical match. There’s some force exerted on teeth that require alignment, and it’s enough to start relocating your teeth toward their final location. This pressure causes your jaw's bone to compress in the direction of tooth movement and expand behind.

What happens if you skimp on wearing your trays?

Wearing your Invisalign trays for fewer hours than recommended could prolong or interrupt your treatment. When you wear your tray according to your dentist's instructions, your jawbone's compression and expansion have a chance to stabilize. Density returns to normal in front of and behind the tooth.

Skipping out of wearing your trays leaves your teeth vulnerable to backward movement. The amount of movement depends on where you are in the tray cycle. If you are a day or two away from advancing to the next tray, there may not be much movement. The first few days of a new tray, though, could be a different story. Following instructions permits your Invisalign trays to act as both tooth movers and tooth retainers, keeping them in place for the next tray in sequence.

Still on the fence about choosing Invisalign? Contact Allure Dental Care of Maple Lawn to learn more about the system and whether it’s right for your teeth and dental alignment needs. Chances are Invisalign is the ideal choice. Don’t wait and wonder. Book your consultation today.