If you’re thinking about straightening your teeth, you may be trying to decide whether you should use traditional fixed braces, or whether you should go for removable clear aligners. To help with your decision, we’ve outlined five advantages of clear aligners.
They don’t change your appearance
Perhaps the most obvious advantage of removable aligners is that you cannot see them. This means that choosing to straighten your teeth won’t have any impact on your appearance, thereby avoiding any issues with self-confidence that may arise with the use of fixed braces.
The treatment time is shorter
Typically, teeth straightening using removable aligners takes between 6 and 14 months, whereas teeth straightening using fixed braces can take as long as 30 months.
You don’t have to give up your favourite foods
Because you can remove aligners when you eat, there’s no need to give up the foods that you would have to avoid with fixed braces as there will be no risk of damaging your aligners.
They’re easier to clean
Compared with fixed braces, removable aligners are much easier to clean because you can take them out of your mouth, enabling you to get to all parts of the aligner with your toothbrush. In addition to this, it’s easier to keep the rest of your mouth clean because, while you are not wearing your aligners, there is nothing that is stopping you from reaching all corners of your mouth with your toothbrush.
They are less painful
Removable aligners are generally less painful than fixed braces. As well as this,
because they are not attached to the surface of the tooth, they reduce the likelihood of developing sores in your mouth.
If you have any more questions about the differences between fixed braces and removable aligners, or if you need advice to help you decide which one is right for you, you should speak to your dentist.
