Everyone knows wearing a retainer regularly is key to maintaining teeth alignment, but you may be surprised to know that properly caring for your retainer plays a huge role, as well. A poorly cared for retainer can warp, break or become otherwise damaged, limiting its ability to maintain the alignment of your teeth. Below, we’re outlining the best retainer care tips so you can keep your retainer in-tact and maintain a healthy smile for your lifetime.
How do you take care of retainers?
There are a couple of key steps you should take to take care of your retainers:
- Remove your retainer when you eat, brush or floss. This will prevent you from damaging your retainer while eating, and will ensure that your teeth remain clean and healthy throughout your retainer usage.
- Keep your retainer clean. In addition to rinsing your retainer on a daily basis, be sure to give your retainer a clean at least once a week. You can do this with a soft-bristled toothbrush using baking soda and water or a mild dish soap.
- Keep your retainer away from heat. This means don’t rinse it in hot water and don’t drink hot beverages with your retainer in your mouth!
- Soak your retainer. This will prevent your retainer from drying out or cracking, extending its lifespan.
- Always store your retainer in its case. Unless you’re soaking your retainer, you should only store it in its case. Otherwise, you are risking that it could get damaged or exposed to germs and bacteria.
How do you take care of a plastic retainer?
Plastic retainers can be more susceptible to damage than retainers made out of other materials, so it’s essential to take the precautions necessary to protect it. As outlined above, you should always keep it clean and store it exclusively in its rigid case. Plastic retainers may also be more susceptible to staining and warping, so be sure to remove it when eating and drinking and keep it clean with routine cleanings.
How often do retainers need to be cleaned?
Your retainer should be cleaned at least every day, but it doesn’t need to be an extensive cleaning. On most days, simply rinsing your retainer with cool water and brushing it with a soft-bristled toothbrush is enough to keep it clean. You may also want to use a baking soda and water mixture or a mild dish soap to eliminate bacteria. For deeper cleans, you can soak your retainer on a weekly basis. Again, you can use a baking soda and water mixture, or white vinegar.
Should I keep my retainer in water?
Keeping your retainer in water is a great way to prevent it from getting dry or cracked. While it may not be practical to keep it in water each time you remove it, soaking it once or twice a week is generally frequent enough to keep the retainer clean and moist. Again, be sure to use cool water, as hot water can warp the retainer and cause it to fit improperly on your teeth!
For more advice on retainers, as well as many other orthodontic treatments and services, contact us today at Drs. Savage, Sabol and Visser.
