How Is Efferdent Better Than Cleaning Retainers with Toothpaste?

If you’re using orthodontic appliances, like aligners and retainers, you know that taking care of your appliances and teeth is important to the success of your treatment plan. Properly cleaning your retainers and aligners helps deliver the best results while keeping your mouth healthy.

Should You Clean Retainers or Aligners with Toothpaste or Mouthwash?

Many people like the minty fresh taste of toothpaste or mouthwash. The tingling sensation makes your mouth feel cleaner, so you’d think it would also clean your retainers or aligners, right? Not so fast!

• Toothpaste – Toothpaste can get stuck in attachment pockets or at attachment spots on retainers or aligners and can be too abrasive for aligners. Most toothpaste is made to remove plaque, which can be too abrasive for your aligners, scratching them and leaving indentations for bacteria to gather. Additionally, if you’re using the same toothbrush you use to brush your teeth, you might be redistributing bacteria from your toothbrush to your aligners.
• Mouthwash – Soaking in mouthwash seems like an easy cleaning solution for aligners or retainers, but actually, mouthwash can sometimes have harsh chemicals or high alcohol content that can damage to the acrylic composition of your retainers or aligners. And any artificial dyes in mouthwash can often stain your dental appliances too.

Looking for minty fresh clean without the potential drawbacks of toothpaste? Try Efferdent®Plus Mint Anti-Bacterial Dental Appliance Cleanser Tablets for an extra boost of minty freshness.  A three-minute soak is all it takes to kill 99.99% of odor-causing bacteria and clean your aligners or retainers.

5 Reasons Why Efferdent is Great for Cleaning Retainers & Aligners

Efferdent is great for deep-cleaning retainers and aligners because of its 5-in-1 cleaning system with Oxi-Action. The power of oxygen effervescently lifts unwanted debris while key ingredients kill bacteria. Efferdent® also:

• Removes stubborn stains and discoloration
• Kills 99.99% of odor-causing bacteria.
• Reduces plaque build-up, especially if you use Efferdent every day!
• Cleans in-between spaces and crevices.

While brushing your teeth gets rid of bacteria and debris, aligners and retainers need deeper cleaning weekly, if not daily. Cleaning your old retainers or aligners before you store them away is another best practice, as you never know if you’ll need to go back a set.

Make Deep Cleaning a Part of Your New Routine

A daily or weekly deep clean will help keep your retainers and aligners feeling and looking fresh! Cleaning with Efferdent® is as easy as filling up a cup with warm water, dropping in an Efferdent® tablet and retainer into the cup, and 3 minutes later, you’ve got a clean dental appliance! Use daily for fresh and clean appliances.