Foods to Eat After Oral Surgery

If you have recently scheduled an dayton oral surgery, it is a great time to start preparing for your surgery recovery. Why? The best thing you can do to ensure you bounce back quickly after surgery is to be prepared. It is important to remember that your dentist wants your surgery to be successful and pain-free so they will give you a long list of instructions and recommendations to assist you. These specific instructions from your dentist will include a list of recommended foods to eat and to avoid after surgery. Patients who are well prepared and stock up on these foods ahead of time have the smoothest recoveries. What are the foods you can and should eat after surgery? And what foods should you avoid? Below is more information to help you prepare for a quick recovery from oral surgery.

Recommended Food List

For at least a few days after oral surgery, your dentist will recommend you stick to eating soft foods that are easy to chew and break down. These recommendations are based on minimizing discomfort and possible damage to your sensitive and healing gum and mouth tissue. To avoid post-surgery pain and discomfort, you should stock your refrigerator with some of the following items:

  • Healthy soups
  • Non-citrus fruit juices
  • Jell-O
  • Applesauce
  • Yogurt
  • Ice cream
  • Mashed potatoes
  • Smoothies or shakes
  • Pasta

You may have never considered how important it is to plan ahead for meals post-surgery. Having oral pain and swelling and being hungry at the same time can really make your recovery period miserable. Some patients even feel that cold frozen foods, such as ice-cream or popsicles help soothe oral pain.

Foods to Avoid

In addition to recommended foods, there is a list of foods that should be avoided after surgery. The foods to be avoided are mostly crunchy and hard foods. Eating hard foods may cause pain or do damage to the sensitive tissue in your mouth. The following foods should be avoided for at least a week post-surgery:

  • Spicy foods or foods with a lot of spice
  • Foods that are tough to chew, such as steak, chicken, bagels or crusty breads
  • Foods that can get stuck in the teeth, such as popcorn, pretzels or chips
  • Alcoholic beverages

Day of Surgery

For the day of surgery, you will have a separate list of instructions to follow to help you prepare. These instructions will likely include sticking to clear foods and fluids, such as clear juices and broths. If your surgery involves receiving an anesthetic, you may also want to be careful about progressing to more substantial foods. After receiving anesthetic, some individuals have sensitive stomachs and do not respond well to a big meal. Rushing to a big meal can result in getting sick and throwing up which can be dangerous to your new wounds. If you have received anesthetic, it is best to start with a small snack and see how the food settles in your stomach before progressing to a larger portion.

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