What is safe to drink with Invisalign?

[jt47000]

I've had my Invisalign Retainers for a few weeks and I've heard different stories on whats safe to drink with my Invisalign Retainers in. Is diet soda ok? I'm not an idiot and realize red wine isn't good with Invisalign retainers in... but what can I get away with? Propel? Gatorade Zero? Thanks!


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[Robin8]

Any drinks that has sugar in it is not safe to drink with the trays in unless you remove them immediately afterwards and clean the teeth & trays.

Soda is harmful to your tooth enamel under normal circumstances, i.e. without Invisalign. (Google “drinks bad for teeth” for more info.) With Invisalign, there’s less saliva flow in the trays so the risks of developing plaque and cavities is higher.

[freysmiles]

The biggest danger with Invisalign trays is drinking acidic drinks while wearing your trays and eroding away your teeth with strong acids in many sports drinks, sodas and diet sodas, citrusy drinks, etc.

Having lots of sugar in your aligners isn't great either as @Robin8 as mentioned too. I would add to her good answer that I would not brush immediately following a meal because acids in some drinks and those produced by bacteria soften up your enamel and create the potential for you to do damage by doing something abrasive like scrubbing with a toothbrush. Either use a re-balancing mouth rinse before brushing or wait 30 minutes to brush.

[45wantsnicesmile]

I take them out to drink most things, but I do drink beer or screwdrivers with them in. When I go to the restroom, I rinse them. Then brush as soon as I'm done drinking. I don't drink sodas with them in and it has cut my soda drinking way down. Thats a plus.

[bham813]

Does anyone out there cheat and drink their first cup of coffee with Invisalign in? It is SUCH a pain to take them out just for that! I don't hae any problem during the day with sodas and sugary drinks since I didn't drink them before and I don't drink cola. I know that I will have to take them out for wine - no bother. But that morning cup of coffee is such a pain for me for some reason. Any experiences???

[annelou]

I was told not to drink anything but water with invisalign, and that's tough. But hot liquids were definitely a no-no. That makes sense to me because hot liquids can effect the plastic trays. So unless you like your coffee lukewarm I'd avoid drinking it with your trays in. I know it's a major pain. I take them out for my first cup(s) of coffee in the morning. During the day at work when I usually drink coffee and can't be bothered with taking them out I found a bottled water product called "Water Joe" that has caffeine in it! Heh, when your used to a 10:00 caffeine fix it's a pretty good substitute. It doesn't have any citric acid in it, or anything but water and natural caffeine. My vice is drinking a glass of white wine with the trays in. When I'm done I rinse my mouth really well with water. I use a "pro-enamel" toothpaste and rinse on my teeth to try to maintain healthy enamel. My teeth have never been cleaner with brushing after every meal. Good luck finding what works for you!

[jacjac]

I read in the brochure that came with my trays that drinking hot drinks is a no-no coz the can warp the thin plastic that trays are made from, also apparently other things can stain the aligners and/or make them cloudy. I dont know if that helps but i think drinking hot coffee might come under both bad things.
However its a bit of a case of pots and kettles as i drank a mojito last night with them in until my boyfriend caught me and practically wrestled them out of my mouth- not a nice experiance, especially in front of our friends- next time ill have to be more secretive, hehe

[chattabob]

I'm not sure I fully understand in detail.... Water I presume is ok to leave them in but you wouldnt taken them out and put them back in for every sip of drink?? I tend to drink water or beer when I'm out....so If Im on a night out how would this work? Do you just have a night off from them?

[hotsteve]

So I've been told by my dentist (and as in the Invisalign manual), all you can drink with them is plain water (not hot water, and not freezing cold water).

Other people do have other drinks whilst wearing the aligners (maybe using a straw), but I personally wouldn't recommend it.... I have spent too much money just to have them break/discolour/warp!

Of course, you can just take out your retainers any time and drink what you want (advice is to only take them out for max 2 hours each day if possible - including meal times etc). So your nights out are hopefully not too long these days Just make sure you brush your teeth before you put the aligners back in.

[DrJasonKTam]

This question keeps coming up but there should be no debate. Water is the only safe thing to drink with your aligners on.

I've written a blog entry about this: http://markhamortho.blogspot.ca/2012/01 ... can-i.html