Why Wear a Retainer?

Try to remember the day you had waited for – the day you got your braces off! You worked hard with your orthodontic treatment and you were ready to rub your tongue over your smooth, braces-free teeth. You finally got to see your beautiful smile and then your doctor made you put your retainer in before you could leave. After 2 years or more, you were just ready to not have anything covering your smile. You could not wait to take it out and show your friends and family right?

However, we hope that you listened to why wearing your appliance was important. No matter if you have had braces or not, your teeth will naturally shift over time as you eat and sleep. To keep your new, straight smile it is important that you wear your retainer as directed by Dr. Harris so that your teeth do not shift out of place. Believe it or not, there are many adults who have had to get braces again because they chose to not wear theirs!

How Do You Clean a Retainer?

With wearing your orthodontic appliance, it will get dirty from being in your mouth full of bacteria. To clean it, it is best to do so right after you take it out of your mouth to help remove debris before it hardens. You can put a small amount of mild hand soap or dish soap on an old toothbrush and clean the appliance like your teeth. You should never boil the retainer.

If you happen to see white spots (calcium deposits) on the retainer, you can try using a denture cleaning tablet that you can buy at almost any store that sells toothpaste. If you are unable to remove them with these cleaning techniques, give us a call and bring your retainer by to be cleaned with our in office solutions.

Reminders

Make sure to always put your retainer in its case when you are not wearing it. Pets love to chew on retainers and retainers can easily become lost or thrown away.

Feel free to call us with any questions!