Brush your teeth with charcoal

Charcoal toothpaste might look fun, but it can be a nightmare for your enamel.

Most charcoal and whitening toothpastes use an abrasive action to clean your teeth and remove stains. This can make your teeth look brighter, but you could be scrubbing away your enamel – your tooth’s protective layer.

As your enamel gets thinner, the dentine underneath starts to show through – leaving your teeth looking yellow and feeling sensitive.

Forget to wear your Invisalign aligners

We’re fully invested in your Invisalign journey and look forward to seeing your results as much as you do.

You’ll need to wear your Invisalign aligners for at least 20 hours every day for them to work their magic. This might sound like hocus-pocus, but each aligner is custom-made to apply just the right amount of pressure to specific teeth for the optimal amount of time.

If you don’t wear your aligners enough, your teeth may not move as planned, and you could delay your final reveal.

Lose your retainers (and not tell us)

If your removable retainers go missing in mysterious circumstances, tell us straight away. We’ll need to act quickly and organise replacements before your teeth start to move.

You’ll need to pop in for impressions so we can create a new set of retainers that fit perfectly.

Retainers should be worn indefinitely to keep your teeth straight. So, even if you finished your treatment many full moons ago, please get in touch.

Eat too many fizzy worms or chocolate pumpkins

Sugar isn’t great for anyone’s teeth, but it can be particularly ghastly while you’re wearing braces and your teeth are trickier to clean.

Grazing on sweet things throughout the day subjects your mouth to a constant acid attack – without giving it time to recover. Over time, this could lead to acid erosion and tooth decay – so cut back on sugar if you can, and save those sweet treats for mealtimes.

Don’t brush around your brackets

A surefire way to terrify your orthodontist is to neglect your oral hygiene. When we fit your braces, we’ll show you how to brush carefully around your brackets and wires.

You’ll need to brush at least twice a day using fluoride toothpaste and floss daily. If you repeatedly miss areas, plaque will accumulate and harden into tartar. If plaque and tartar aren’t removed, they can eventually lead to your dentist’s nemeses – gum disease and tooth decay.

We’ll keep a close eye on your oral health at your check-ups and between appointments using our DentalMonitoring app. You can test how well you’re cleaning at home using disclosing tablets. They stain plaque purple, making it easy to spot and brush away.

Happy Halloween from our wicked team.