Best Foods to Eat Following a Tooth Extraction for a Smooth Recovery

What can you eat after having your tooth removed? To ensure the highest level of healing for your dental procedure, find the safest foods to consume.

While tooth extractions can help reduce or stop the pain, your gums will feel tender after the procedure.

You can just eat ice cream until the pain wears away, right? Wrong! Your post-procedure diet needs to be packed with nutritious foods to help avoid complications and promote fast healing.

So, what can you eat after tooth extraction? Read on to find out!

The Importance of a Proper Post-Extraction Diet

After a tooth extraction, your mouth is in a delicate state. The extraction site is an open wound that needs time to heal.

During this period, you need to:

• Stay away from foods that have the potential to cause wounds or detach blood clots because such situations could develop into dry sockets.
• Choose soft, nutrient-rich foods to support healing and keep your energy levels up.
• Stay hydrated while maintaining proper nutrition to build up a strong immune system.

Ignoring these guidelines could slow your recovery, increase your risk of infection, and prolong discomfort. That’s why it’s crucial to be mindful of what you eat.

Foods to Eat After Tooth Extraction

Focus on eating soft foods after tooth extraction. These will be easier to chew and less likely to get stuck in your gums while healing. But they should also be as nutritious as possible, with plenty of vitamins, minerals, protein, and energy to ensure speedy healing.

Here’s a short list of soft foods to eat after tooth extraction to help guide you:

Soup

Start your post-extraction diet with soup because it works best during the initial few days after extraction surgery. It is rich in potassium, vitamin A, and fibre and nourishes you.

Opt for smooth, blended soups such as:

• Pumpkin soup
• Tomato soup
• Creamy chicken soup
• Bone broth (which contains collagen to help tissue repair)

Make sure it’s lukewarm or cold. If it’s too hot, it will hurt where your tooth was extracted and might cause infection.

Applesauce

Applesauce is a good choice after tooth extraction because it adds fibre to your diet.

Yogurt

Greek yogurt contains protein and calcium, which support recovery, so you should consume large amounts of it.

Yogurt also has a creamy texture that makes it easy to eat after getting your tooth pulled.

Eggs

Eating scrambled eggs is one of the most recommended diets after tooth extraction. Eggs are high in protein and other vitamins and minerals that are good for your body.

The food offers smooth eating and swallowing characteristics. Before scrambling the eggs, you could add cheese for extra flavour.

Oatmeal

Oats are among the most nutritious foods. They’re filling and a good source of fibre, plus they contain vitamins and minerals. It’s also best to opt for instant oatmeal because it’s less chewy than other types, such as oatmeal made with steel-cut oats.

To avoid irritation, ensure the oats have cooled down before eating them.

Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a great food option after tooth extraction. Not only is it soft, but it’s also rich in nutrients that could help speed up recovery.

Ensure to eat them at a lukewarm temperature to avoid irritating the extraction site.

Cottage Cheese

Cottage cheese is soft and creamy, making it easy to chew and swallow as you recover from tooth extraction. It is also packed with protein, which may aid wound recovery.

Foods to Avoid After Tooth Extraction

While some foods promote healing, others can cause complications.

Here are some foods you should avoid during your recovery:

• Crunchy foods like chips, nuts, and popcorn have a high chance of wedging or wading into your extraction site, hurting the healing area.
• Sticky food items, including chewing gum together with caramel, should be avoided because they pull at the healing blood clot.
• Spicy foods may cause discomfort and irritation in the affected area.
• Acidic substances in citrus fruits and tomatoes produce discomfort when they touch the extraction wound.
• Hard foods such as raw vegetables and hard bread require excessive chewing, which can be uncomfortable.
• Alcohol delays the recovery time while making infections more likely to occur.
• Hot beverages like coffee or tea can disrupt clot formation and prolong healing.

Additional Aftercare Tips for a Speedy Recovery

Besides eating the right foods, here are a few essential aftercare tips to ensure a smooth recovery:

• To maintain cleaning standards, keep the area clean with salt water after 24 hours.
• Practice light physical activities for 48 hours to reduce bleeding while healing occurs.
• Get enough rest to help your body focus on healing.
• Follow your dentist’s instructions regarding pain management and oral hygiene.
• Drinking lots of water remains essential for recovery because it aids natural healing.

Tooth Extraction Aftercare in Wodonga

We hope your tooth extraction went well and that you’re fully recovered. We also hope that we have given you some good ideas for what to eat after tooth extraction.

With all these soft foods, we’re guessing you couldn’t wait to return to your usual diet.

Hang on to our list, though, since you or someone you know might have a dental procedure in the near future.

Call us if you need anything else or would like to schedule a dental check-up with your Wodonga dentist.

Contact (02) 6024 1516 or book your online appointment.

Visit us at 340 Beechworth Road in Wodonga.

We look forward to hearing from you!