One of the advantages of orthodontic treatment using Invisalign braces is that tooth bleaching or whitening can be done as part of the process. Many people find that bleaching their teeth at the beginning of orthodontics is an excellent motivator at a time when they are making the difficult adjustment to life with braces.

Invisalign braces are a modern alternative to fixed metal or clear braces. Made of medical grade plastic they are clear, removable, flexible but strong aligners. Custom made using a mould of the patients mouth, teeth are moved by using a series of aligners. These aligners are worn 20-22 hours a day and can be used as trays for an at home bleaching procedure.

An at home bleaching process requires two elements: a bleaching gel or solution and trays to apply the treatment to your teeth. What often makes at home bleaching procedures purchased through a dentist expensive is that they require the making of custom made trays in order to get a good result. This means that the dentist or orthodontist must spend a considerable amount of time taking moulds of the teeth in order to create a perfect fit. 

However, an Invisalign braces patient already has a custom tray, made by a dentist or orthodontist, in the form of their Invisalign aligner. This is perfect for at home bleaching. This can be filled with a bleaching gel or solution either provided by the orthodontist or obtained by the patient.

The gel is usually added to the tray and then, depending on the strength of the formula, worn for one to twelve hours. This may be repeated over a number of nights.

As the bleaching tray (or aligner) is custom made there are no gaps between the tray and the teeth to lead to an uneven result.

During my Invisalign treatment my orthodontist provided me with Nitewhite gel which I used with great success. However I discovered shortly afterwards that it was available for Amazon at a significantly lower cost than through my orthodontist.

One of the limitations of using Invisalign aligners as bleaching trays is that many Invisalign patients require the use of buttons or attachments as part of their treatment. This is where small clear blobs of hard material are attached to the teeth in order to give the aligners more grip on teeth requiring complex movements.

Whilst these attachments are in position Invisalign trays should not be used as bleaching trays as the areas underneath the attachments do not bleach leaving a darker area on the tooth.

For this reason Invisalign patients are advised to bleach either during the first four weeks of treatment prior to attachments being fixed or at the end of treatment after attachment removal when final Invisalign trays may be being used as a retainer.