Skip to Content

Eating And Invisalign

This post may contain affiliate links and/or codes. You won’t pay anything extra, but I might make a commission.

One of the biggest reasons I didn’t want to straighten my teeth with braces was that I like to eat what I want, when I want. (I’m a member of the Invisalign Mom Advisory Board, and am receiving complimentary treatment.) My favorite thing about Invisalign aligners versus braces is that not a single food is off limits. I just take your aligners out first, which takes me about six seconds.

Here’s everything I can think of about food and Invisalign. Please don’t hesitate to ask questions if I left something out!

Drinking and Invisalign

According to my orthodontist, Dr. Hung, I can drink pretty much anything I want with my aligners in, as long as it’s not hot enough to melt the aligners. I don’t drink coffee or tea, but I do enjoy the occasional hot chocolate. I can drink all cold drinks with my aligners in. Soup, ice cream, milkshakes, and yogurt are all OK with the aligners in – as long as there are no chunks that require chewing.

Eating and Invisalign

Mints are fine too, as long as I don’t chomp down on them. Good thing, too, because the one food-related thing that took some getting used to was not chewing gum. I mean, I could take the aligners out and chew it, but I used to chew gum a lot. And since I’m supposed to have my aligners in for at least 22 hours per day, that wouldn’t leave any time for actual food. Dr. Hung recommended Altoids smalls, and I carry them with me all the time now. They’re small enough that I’m not tempted to bite them, and they’re really powerful.

Eating at home is no problem at all. I usually take my aligners out, rinse them off, and put them in a case while I eat. Unless I’m home alone, and then I get totally lazy: I take them out, put them beside my plate, and put them back in when I’m done. A little gross to some people, probably, but I promise not to do it if you’re eating with me, OK?

Restaurants and Invisalign

When I’m in a restaurant, I have to make a judgment call: is the person I’m with going to give a crap if I take them out right there are the table? My friends don’t mind, or they’re just being nice and are secretly grossed out. I usually try to hide behind a napkin and take them out discreetly. Of course, there’s no way to be discreet when there’s a trail of spit attached to an aligner, which sometimes happens with my lower tray. But I’m getting better at it.:-) If I’m eating with people I don’t know well enough to dig into my mouth in front of, I just go around a corner or into a bathroom. Same to put them back in. For the first few weeks I had trouble putting the trays in without a mirror, but now I can do it no problem.

Everything Else

Cooking can sometimes be a little more difficult, since I can’t take bites as I go along. But I can get enough on my tongue to get a taste, and see if it needs salt or whatever.

The first three or four days of a new set of trays (I change them every two weeks), I have to remember to take my trays out at least five minutes before I want to eat, especially if the food involves a lot of chewing, like bagels. My teeth and gums usually feel sore with new trays right after I take them out, but after a few minutes they feel fine. And after a few days, when the trays aren’t as tight against my teeth, it’s not an issue anyway.

One thing I’ve been asked is if I eat less food as an indirect result of wearing Invisalign, and that’s a tough question. Whenever I want to eat, I pull out my trays and I eat. But I think I am less likely to pull them out just to lick a knife or take one bite of something. Invisalign has helped me to stop and think before I eat something – it gives me an opportunity to pause and really consider if I want it or not. So I think it would depend on your personality. I’m pretty lazy, so I usually don’t bother to take the aligners out unless I’m going to eat an entire meal.

And that’s it! As long as I take my aligners out, there is nothing I can’t eat. Love it!

Drinking with Invisalign

Drinking with my Invisalign aligners in!

I am a member of the Invisalign Moms Advisory Board. I am receiving complimentary Invisalign treatment as part of this program. All opinions are my own and based on my own treatment experience. Full disclosure can be found here: http://shout.lt/ggGP

Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 1. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.

Ria

Tuesday 20th of March 2018

Hi I was told that any food or drink (except water) would cause staining with them left in . Have you found this with drinks ?

Amy Oztan

Thursday 22nd of March 2018

Definitely. I didn't care so much during treatment, because I was only wearing each set of trays for two weeks, so they didn't have time to get too dark, but they definitely did get a little stained. And now I'm just wearing trays at night, so the staining still doesn't bother me, because I'm at home. It was always worse on the top trays, because the liquid would actually get in there and just sit, and I figured that wasn't great for the trays or my teeth, so sometimes I would pop my top tray off to drink (it just ran off of the bottom tray and didn't get inside, so the staining wasn't anywhere near as bad).

Jennifer Bullock {mommybknowsbest.com}

Tuesday 9th of July 2013

I am probably just a weirdo but I can't imagine eating or drinking anything but water in my aligners, I always imagine sugar and food getting stuck in there and marinating. *LOL* I do love your tip about taking your aligners off a few minute before you eat to give them time to "rest".

Amy Oztan

Tuesday 9th of July 2013

@Jennifer Bullock {mommybknowsbest.com}: If I had to guess, I'd guess more people are like you!

Angie Nelson

Tuesday 9th of July 2013

I am hoping to get started in December, so I appreciate the play-by-play. I just asked them about any soreness that comes with new aligners and how long it lasts.

Amy Oztan

Tuesday 9th of July 2013

@Angie Nelson: Yay for you! I usually find that there's a lot of pressure on my teeth - especially the top four so far - for the first four days after I change to new trays. After that hardly any pressure at all. I wouldn't go so far as to call it soreness. Although when I take them out to eat those first few days, that's definitely soreness!

ChrisLuigard

Thursday 4th of July 2013

@SelfishMom Wow I'm jealous! My dr. said only water with trays in! I'm snacking less tho, cuz I brush teeth & trays after eating anything.

Privacy Policy ~ Full Disclosure ~ Disclaimer