The instructions that come with your starter kit say that you cannot smoke with the aligners on. According to invisalign this stains the aligners, making them no longer invisible. Non-smokers are quick to say "just quit" and although this would be ideal, it's not realistic. Smoking is a hard habbit to break. It takes mental preparation and does not happen overnight. So for those of you who smoke and are contemplating starting invisalign, don't hesitate because you don't always have to go by the book.
SMOKING WITH ALIGNERS ON
I took them off the first day to smoke. After that I realized that if I take them off to smoke every time (in addition to eating, drinking fluids other than water, and brushing), I would not meet the 22 hour regiment my dentist emphasized. I started smoking with them on. The aligners don't get stained more than any non-smoker's aligners would. You just have to be hygenic and clean them dilligently [see below].
I read a lot of reviews by non-smokers who said that their aligners started to smell towards the end of the 2 weeks of having each set on. I did not have this problem. My invisalign aligners do not smell AT ALL. My breath is always fresh and so are my aligners. Perhaps it is also dependant upon what kind of toothepaste you use. I use "Colgate Advanced" toothepaste / "Reach" floss by Johnson & Johnson. I use salt water to rinse (because this is soothing for your gums) and Listerine to rinse a second time (because it gets rid of more plaque germs than brushing & flossing alone and it helps fight gingivitis). I also drink a lot of water. Every time I smoke I feel like drinking water helps to clean them. Maybe it's in my head but that could be a reason why I have not had a staining or odor problem. I brush my aligners with toothepaste every morning after I brush my teeth. Once a week, while I am eating, I soak them in clorox bleach, and they are as clear as day 1 (btw the invisalign instructions say not to clean them with anything other than Retainer Bright and toothepaste ... but I read someone's blog who said this did not hurt the aligners and it was a great way to clean ... so I tried it, loved the idea & continued to implement this cleaning technique). I also clean them with retainer bright once a week when I have NOT soaked them in Clorox Bleach the same day.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Do I condone this? I don't challenge Aligntech. The rules are the rules. Every individual is different. I am simply sharing my experience with smoking with my aligners on and I have not had any problems as far as staining and odor is concerned. If you are skeptical about deviating from the instructions, test it out a day or two before you are suppose to switch to a new set of aligners. That way, if anything is out of the ordinary, you can switch to the next aligners a day or two early. This probabaly won't effect your treatment. Reason? Most of the teeth movements occur within the first week. The rest of time is for your teeth to settle in. Thats why the first few days on a new set of aligners cause minor discomfort and during the rest of the two week time frame, it's relatively comfortable.
I would love to hear other people's experiences with smoking while undergoing invisalign treatment. Advice? Thoughts? Ideas? Questions? Please share, thanks.
Thank you so much for this information. Much love.
ReplyDelete=) glad to help!
Deletethank you, that was very detailed and extremely helpful. :)
DeleteExcellent post. I have been doing the same as you except the clorox. Going to be trying that today. My only problem is the invislign is is building up a white material inside that I have to SCRUB out. ANd it also smells like protein build up, weird.
ReplyDeleteYou know what, I had the same issue. I used to brush my aligners like the dentist said but it still happened. After I started cloroxing them, they come out brand spanking new every time. Now I do it every morning. I'll brush my aligners first, soak them in clorox while im brushing my teeth, and then rinse them and put them back in... ODOR FREE!
DeleteGood to know! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI have been smoking with mine in and out. I have found that my teeth are really stained, especially around the attachments. I have tried smokers toothpaste but not much luck. I think I will have to go for a clean. I have not worked out if it is better to smoke with them in or out (Not at all most would say). I was really strong in the beginning and was able to quit for a couple of months. The stains look ugly and defeat the purpose of a nice new smile. I am hoping once I get them cleaned I will have the will power to quit again
ReplyDeleteTell me about it ... I have to quit at some point also. The behavior and the association to certain things is what make it difficult for me (ie coffee, after eating). I am trying to cut down at the moment; definitely not ready to quit yet. I use colgate optic white. my teeth arent super perfect white but theyre not bad or super stained either.
Deletei think lighting also makes a difference in pictures. As you can see in mine, they look really white in some pictures and really yellow in others.
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