Can I drink coffee with Invisalign?
Wed, Aug 6, 2008
Yes, you can. But would you?
Coffee is pretty famous for having the “talent” to stain things. Your Invisalign trays are clear when you start wearing them (the first days in the 2 weeks normal wear time) and it would be nice to have them as clear as possible till the end of those 14 days.
Any stains on the Invisalign aligners will show since it would make them dark and your teeth would look yellowish. This is why (clearly for cosmetic uses, since less patients really think about health) it’s important to keep the aligners clean.
I drank coffee myself with the aligners, but most of the time I try to avoid this. I tend to be more lax in the 12th day for instance since I know the aligners will come off and I can abuse them some more. On the other hand I am not a regular coffee drinker, so it’s not that hard to keep from it.
When I know I have to drink something that would potentially stain my aligners I always think if it’s not possible to take the aligners off and then brush my teeth. Sure, when I am at home NOTHING gets into my mouth with the aligners on. When I meet someone for a talk I try to stick to clear mineral water. I don’t care that much about the stains as I care about the “yucky” taste I’d have in my mouth till I’d be able to clean. The liquid gets under the aligners too and will stay there “decaying” till you brush your teeth and clean the aligners.
So, even if you can drink coffee and wine and coca cola, it’s a good idea to steer away when you know you can’t take the Invisalign off. If you are at home, it’s easier, but when in the city, maybe you just don’t want to start cleaning in a public restroom just because you couldn’t keep off the coffee.
How do you handle this?
Tags: Invisalign
December 1st, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Nice and usefull post, thanks, this is one for my bookmarks!
December 19th, 2008 at 11:52 am
hi
i do wear my invisaling 20 hours a day, but I m not really satisfied about one tooth, it has moved a bit but is not totally in the right place.
what can I do about it? my dentist said that it will be all right, but now i worry cause it s now my last tray.
can anyone tell me what to do?
December 23rd, 2008 at 11:14 am
Hello Rania and welcome to the blog.
What did your orthodontist tell you? The tooth should be fine at the end, if not, there is a possibility to have few more aligners ordered for you to fix this. A new “impression” would be taken and you should receive few more trays to solve the issue. Discuss this with your ortho and I am sure there is a way to fix this. You shouldn’t end the treatment with crooked teeth that’s for sure.
Please keep us posted on how it goes
January 2nd, 2009 at 3:35 pm
THANK JOU DOJO
I HAVE AN APPOINTEMENT IN FEBRUARY.I HOPE IT WILL BE ALL RIGHT
I WILL KEEP IN TOUCH
January 20th, 2009 at 5:56 pm
Oh my!
You should drink nothing with the aligners in place except cold, cool, or slightly warm water.
Hot drinks can warp the trays, and even if they do so only subtly, it has the potential to derail your treatment.
Then there is staining. Never mind about staining the aligners (you’ll be tossing them out before too long, after all) but why would you want to bathe your teeth in a staining bath or coffee, tea, red wine, or whatever? And just as a thin film of saliva can get into the trays, so too will anything you drink whilst wearing them.
But staining the teeth is really the lesser worry. Truth is that most drinks are sufficiently acidic to soften and erode the enamel on your teeth (drinks like soda, red wine, fruit juice, or sports drinks are among the worst) so does bathing them in these liquids sound like a great idea?
If you must consume any drink other than water whilst you wear your trays, please take the aligner out afterwards and rinse the trays and your teeth with regular water. And don’t brush until a half hour after consuming acidic drinks.
February 23rd, 2009 at 4:47 pm
This does not sound like a good idea to me. Invisalign can be expensive to get your hands on. Further, it might be able to trap coffee, thus prolonging the time it stays in contact with your teeth. This could mean substantial tooth discoloration.
March 17th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
I have never seen and Invisalign in person and was just wonding if it was hard to get in and out of your mouth?
September 19th, 2009 at 3:25 pm
They are kind of hard to get in the first day or two of the new trays, but after that it’s very simple
September 29th, 2009 at 5:47 am
If I am wearing an invisalign, I will not have a coffee for the days that I have to wear. After the treatment is over, I can have what ever I like. Any stain on the invisalign aligners will turn dark and our teeth will become yellow so it is important to keep the aligners clean. Well I would take care of the invisalign if I were with my friends outside for party, as we cannot brush our teeth in a public restroom. If I were to consume some drinks, I will take the aligner out before drinking and rinse with pure water to make it clean before putting it back again.
October 25th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
Good that I’m not a coffee drinker I will not have hard time, I supposed, when my braces are on, does it also works for braces or for invisalign only?
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:21 am
Thanks for the advice. Yes, Coffee, cold drinks are some of the factors that can cause stain to the teeth. Invisalign users should reduce the use of coffee as it can decay and stain your teeth and you can’t put the Invisalign off while you are having coffee or wine etc. After having a coffee, brushing your teeth each and every time should be avoided because the professional dentist only recommends twice or thrice brushing as it can damage the Gums of your teeth.
November 18th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Hi Dojo, you have some interesting articles here. But I see you didn’t post anything for a lot of time… did you lose your interest in braces?
November 19th, 2009 at 8:35 am
it’s harder to get out in the beginning because the fit is tight but it gets better.