So you’re thinking about starting your teeth straightening journey, but aren’t impressed with the idea of flossing around those wires? It’s especially off-putting if you have a family history of gum disease and are working hard to keep your gums healthy and happy. While the new habits you’ll need to master for your oral hygiene can be a little more challenging with more traditional orthodontic treatment, advanced clear aligner treatments like Invisalign® can be a great option for you!
Let’s discover how Invisalign can help safeguard your gums and make your smile transformation simple and stress-free.
3 Ways Invisalign can help promote happy, healthy gums
When you choose Invisalign treatment for your smile journey, you’re not just choosing a practically invisible treatment that will seamlessly fit into your lifestyle, but also one that makes your gums happy! As the tissue blanket of your tooth roots, your gums play an important role in your oral health, helping to stabilize your teeth and protect your roots from harmful bacteria. Here’s how Invisalign can help protect your gums during orthodontic treatment.
- Greater comfort with a custom fit: Every aligner set is custom-made for you using scans from our iTero digital impression system. After Dr. Andrews approves the designs and your custom treatment plan, your digital smile file will be sent off to the Invisalign labs for official creation.
- Easy to brush your teeth and floss: You don’t have to worry about brushing around brackets and wires with Invisalign! Just simply remove your aligners before every meal and brush your teeth normally before you re-insert them. And you can floss as normal once a day.
- Simple process to clean your trays: Just like your teeth, your aligners can get plaque build-up too. Luckily, these are just as easy to clean as your teeth. Simply scrub your aligners daily with a soft-bristle toothbrush and toothpaste.
Invisalign and gum disease facts
Now you may have heard speculation on Invisalign “causing” gum disease. But you’ll be happy to know this is a myth! Orthodontic treatment — including Invisalign— does NOT cause gum disease. The number one cause for gum disease is poor oral hygiene habits.
Invisalign and Gingivitis
When gum disease first develops, you may experience inflamed or bleeding gums or bad breath. While braces can pose a challenge with brackets and wires to maneuver and clean around, Invisalign aligners can make your oral hygiene routine a breeze! You’ll be able to remove your aligners before brushing and flossing as normal, no adjustment period or extra skills required. Because gingivitis starts with poor oral hygiene, Invisalign can help make your routine easier and less time-consuming so you can effectively prevent gingivitis from ever beginning.
Invisalign for periodontal disease
Periodontal disease and gum disease are the same thing. What matters most about this disease isn’t which of these two words to use, it’s the stages. Here’s a quick overview of the stages of periodontal disease:
- Gingivitis. (We discussed this previously.)
- Periodontitis – In stage two of gum disease, you may experience receding gums, pain when biting or chewing, frequent bleeding, sensitivity in teeth and gums, loose teeth or wiggling teeth, and odors when flossing or bad breath.
- Advanced periodontitis – With advanced periodontitis, you may experience persistent bad breath or bad odor in the mouth, swollen gums, a change in the way your top and bottom teeth fit together, exposed teeth roots and receding gums, blood on your toothbrush, and sores in the mouth.
So you see how periodontal disease can advance and how damaging it can be for your gum health. Fortunately, choosing Invisalign treatment can help you protect your gums from developing periodontal disease; as long as you’re practicing good oral hygiene!
Invisalign aligners are custom-designed for your teeth, which gives you the perfect fit with every aligner set. These aligners can provide comfort through minimizing gaps for bacteria to accumulate and gum sensitivity with smooth aligner edges. Their removability also helps you get a thorough clean every time you brush and floss which removes plaque before it hardens into tartar (the bacteria which causes gum disease).
Can Invisalign help gum recession?
Gum recession is a symptom of stage two periodontal disease and as such the only thing that can help reverse or stop its progression is treatment from a periodontal specialist. But while Invisalign cannot help gum recession, it can help prevent it! By fixing your bite and straightening your teeth, you’ll be creating more than a beautiful healthy smile. Your oral health will thank you too! As it will be easier to brush and floss and straight teeth create less spaces for bacteria to accumulate and grow.
In addition, many patients are concerned with gum irritation during orthodontic treatment, but you’ll be glad to know that Invisalign wearers don’t experience that! Due to their custom fit and patented smooth plastic material, Invisalign aligners don’t irritate gum tissue. So there’s no stress about gum recession as long as you wear your aligners and stick to a strong oral hygiene routine.
Still have questions about Invisalign and gum health?
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions or concerns! As a Diamond Plus Invisalign Provider, we’ve got the expertise and experience to recommend and assist you in a comfortable smile transformation.
Dr. Andrews and our team are here to help you not just protect your gum health, but help you achieve incredible results from your orthodontic treatment.
Ready to set your dream smile into motion? Let’s get started! Request your complimentary consultation with a highly-experienced orthodontist in Grovetown or Augusta!