Tom Cruise Was Right…..About Invisalign, Not Scientology

I love Tom Cruise, but I remember thinking he was a little bit crazy when I saw him on a late-night show, talking about, of all things, Invisalign. I’m talking about the clear plastic aligners which promise perfect teeth and a straight, corrected bite. Why would Tom Cruise need such thing? He already has a beautiful winning smile and his chompers looked fine to me, I thought.

That was until I noticed my own teeth shifting and crowding, gradually, years after I myself had suffered the teenage torment of primitive braces. When my dentist Dr. Gerald Bittner Jr. recommended Invisalign, I thought about it long and hard. It’s an investment in both effort and money, two things which I hate to part with, but I’m so glad now that I relinquished! Invisalign has made a profound difference in my teeth and smile, made it nearly effortless for me to floss, and was the 100% right choice for me. You don’t even feel them working, they are so non-intrusive. But you most definitely see them working.

“Invisalign has been proven as an amazing advancement for both general dentists and orthodontists treating malocclusion,” said Ria Suri, DDS, of Bittner Family Dental Group.

Here’s how they work: You wear the aligners, which are very inconspicuous, continuously…except while eating and drinking, and of course you remove them for brushing and flossing as well. This means better oral hygiene than braces due to the fact that they are conveniently removable.

“Many people just focus on the esthetics of Invisalign treatment but I can tell you both as a dentist and a patient that Invisalign not just improves your oral hygiene, but also boosts your self confidence so you can get the smile you want by wearing a device that allows you to floss with ease and maintain your gum health,” she added.

The flexible aligners use gradual continuous pressure to correct your bite, but they need to be brushed to keep them clean and hygienic. Depending on your complications and needs, the entire Invisalign process can take anywhere from two or three months up to three years, for severe cases.

Once you reach the pinnacle of the ideal bite, you are given “maintenance” aligners which are worn only during sleeping. The trays help prevent wear from grinding due to their soft, almost rubbery consistency, yet still manage to keep the teeth from shifting because they provide a gradual kind of tension. Hard to describe, but wonderful! Therefore, a beautiful, perfect smile and healthy teeth are things you will live with for the rest of your life.

Unlike retainers that come with braces, Invisalign is quietly powerful, infinitely more comfortable, and almost unnoticeable, plus it protects the teeth from grinding! It’s the lifelong solution for a stunning smile.

Even if you have had braces in the past, I recommend that everyone consult their dentist to see if Invisalign is right for them. I think Invisalign is the greatest invention since, well…since Tom Cruise.