In this article we're going to look at some of the most common questions and queries people have about Invisalign invisible braces. They have become a much talked about alternative to traditional metal wire braces, and the idea of being able to achieve teeth alignment without having to wear something as obvious as a metal brace is very appealing, But many people worry that the idea of invisible braces is a little too farfetched, and that the reality must in some way fall far short of the promise.

This is a selection of some of the most popular questions asked about Invisible Aligner and their clear braces, offering some advice and recommendations to help anyone considering teeth alignment to make up their mind.

1. Are Invisalign invisible braces really invisible? In fact Invisalign themselves don't usually refer to them as invisible - they're usually called clear braces. Invisible is stretching it perhaps, but to be honest, the braces are so small, so slim and made of such a clear material that they don't show up, and are actually hard to see. They're shaped to match your teeth, fitting over the front. Unless you know what to look for and look closely at someone's teeth you almost certainly won't notice that someone is wearing them. In normal everyday conversation you'd be very unlikely to spot someone who was wearing a clear brace.

2. Do Invisalign clear braces achieve the same quality of teeth alignment as traditional metal braces? Clearly traditional metal braces have had plenty of time in which to prove themselves as capable of achieving excellent results, giving people the smile they've always wanted. Invisalign is a few years old now, but still relatively new. So how do its results compare? To be honest there isn't much to pick between them. Both can achieve outstanding results very effectively. However, there are two important differences to bear in mind.

Traditional metal braces tend to be fitted based on a dentist's professional intuition. The results are never guaranteed, they're not known precisely, and the patient will have no way of knowing what they'll end up looking like. With Invisalign invisible braces the entire process is planned using powerful computer technology. Using virtual reality the dentist is able to manipulate each tooth, generating not only the end result but every two week interim stage leading up to the final alignment. This means that the process is very much more planned and the outcome known more accurately. Patients are also able to see the images, so they'll know what their teeth will look like when the process is over.

3. Do invisible braces take any longer to complete the teeth alignment process? No. In fact on average they take about half the time that a traditional metal brace would take. On average people can expect to wear metal braces for two to three years. Many patients using Invisalign's clear braces find the treatment is completed in under a year, and certainly within 18 months. This means that with clear braces the end result is more certain, the patient more aware of the end result, the braces themselves virtually undetectable and the process completed in a fraction of the time. This begs one more question...

4. What's the catch? Although there is no catch as such, there are two good reasons why you might not choose Invisalign. The first reason is that unlike with normal braces which are fitted and then more or less forgotten, once you've had your first set of clear braces fitted you'll need to go back after just two weeks to have the next set fitted. This repeats every two weeks throughout the whole treatment. It's also worth noting that unlike with normal braces, invisible braces from Invisalign can be removed at any time, which means that it does require a certain amount of self discipline to keep them in for the minimum required period of time each day.