If you’re considering dental implant surgery, you likely know how important it is to follow a strict schedule for eating and drinking after the procedure. It can be challenging to avoid your favorite foods and drinks for a while afterward, but missing this crucial window can seriously impact the longevity and success of your implants.
What are dental implants?
Dental implants are a cutting-edge solution to common dental issues, such as missing teeth and loose dentures. Unlike other tooth-replacement methods, dental implants replace the root of the tooth as well as the crown. This allows them to provide strong, permanent support for your new smile.
In addition to their durability, a dental implant is also highly customizable. They can be made to match the color and shape of natural teeth perfectly, giving you natural-looking replacement teeth.
Foods to Avoid After Dental Implant Surgery
When getting dental implants, you must take specific steps to ensure proper healing in your recovery period. Your diet plays an essential role in the success of any surgical procedure, especially when it comes to dental implant surgery. Some foods can irritate the implant area or affect the healing process in other ways, such as increasing inflammation or preventing adequate blood flow.
To avoid complications and ensure the best possible outcome, it is essential to follow a soft food diet during the first few days following your surgery. Some of the top foods to avoid include spicy foods, acidic foods, caffeine-heavy beverages, and hard foods or crunchy foods. By sticking to a nutrient-rich and soft diet for a few days after surgery, you can promote a healthy recovery process and protect your investment in your new dental implants.
Timeline for Reintroducing Foods
Luckily, there is a clear timeline for gradually reintroducing different types of foods back into your diet. You should eat soft foods like pureed soups or liquids the first few days following your surgery. After that, you can gradually work up to more solid foods. Just be sure you don’t put excessive pressure on the newly placed implants while chewing.
Don’t skip meals, and remember to get proper nutrition. This will encourage healing and support bone growth around the implant, making your implant more likely to succeed.
How long after dental implant surgery can you eat normally?
It is vital to give your mouth time to heal before returning to your regular diet, but you can return to eating normally about a week after getting your new implants.
Immediately after the surgery, you will need to stick to soft foods like applesauce and mashed potatoes. Most patients prepare for this by stocking up on meal replacement shakes for their recovery. After a few days, you can start to add soft solids back into your diet, but it is important to be careful not to bite or chew on the surgical site. After that, you can gradually introduce harder foods, but you should still avoid crunchy foods and sticky foods. You should also avoid foods like seeds that can become lodged in the implant site for at least the first week.
Contact us!
Schedule a consultation with Bergens Periodontics and Implant Dentistry today if you consider implants. We will answer any of your questions and make sure you have clear instructions to make a recovery as easy as possible.
Give our office a call at (386) 738-0313, or contact us here to set up an appointment.
