If you have recently had a tooth extracted, you need to know which foods and drinks are permissible to eat or drink afterward. Foods such as:
- Ice cream
- Yogurt
- Porridge
- Jelly
- Pudding
- Custard
- Cold Sholeh Zard (Saffron Rice Pudding)
- Cold Shir Berenj (Rice Pudding)
- Soft-cooked rice (Kateh)
- Noodles and Pasta
- Mashed Potatoes
- Mashed Carrots
- Pumpkin
- Chicken Soup
- Milk
Tooth extraction, whether due to decay or any other reason, can be an unpleasant experience for an individual. Of course, feeling pain, swelling, and minor bleeding is a natural part of this process. However, there are solutions that can help alleviate this pain and swelling more quickly. One of these solutions is choosing a suitable diet. Making the right dietary choices in the first few hours and days after dental surgery will help you return to your normal life routine faster, get rid of the toothache caused by the extraction, and plan for filling the empty space of your tooth.
In this article, we intend to answer frequently asked questions such as: What to eat after a tooth extraction? How many hours after tooth extraction can we eat? What to eat after wisdom tooth extraction? And how many hours after tooth extraction can we eat ice cream? So, stay with us.
The Importance of Choosing a Suitable Diet After Tooth Extraction
- Preventing Bleeding: Soft and easy-to-chew foods do not put pressure on your gums and reduce the risk of bleeding.
- Reducing Pain and Swelling: Cool and cold foods can help reduce gum pain and swelling.
- Accelerating the Healing Process: Nutritious foods rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants facilitate your healing process.
- Preventing Infection: Choosing healthy foods along with maintaining oral hygiene helps prevent infection in the area where the tooth was extracted.
What to Eat After a Tooth Extraction?
If you have questions like “what should I eat immediately after tooth extraction?”, “how many hours after tooth extraction can I drink water?”, or “how many hours after tooth extraction can I eat food?”, we must say that one of the important tips for stopping the bleeding of an extracted tooth is to avoid eating for at least 2 hours after the extraction. However, after this time, you can start eating with cool liquids like water, fruit juice, and smoothies.
How Many Hours After Tooth Extraction Can We Eat Ice Cream?
We often encounter the frequently asked question, “Should we eat ice cream after a tooth extraction?” In response, we must say that eating ice cream or anything cool helps reduce your gum inflammation. Beneficial foods that help reduce pain, gum bleeding, and facial swelling up to 6 hours after tooth extraction include the following:
- Ice cream
- Yogurt
- Porridge
- Jelly
- Pudding
- Custard
- Cold Sholeh Zard (Saffron Rice Pudding)
- Cold Shir Berenj (Rice Pudding)
What to Eat in the First Few Days After Tooth Extraction?
1. Soup
You might ask, “what should we eat when we’ve had a tooth extracted?” Soup is one of the best foods you can have after your dental surgery. This is because this complete meal is soft and easy to chew, helping to supply the body’s required nutrients without putting extra pressure on your gums. Soup keeps you full, is easy to digest, and also helps to hydrate your body. Avoid eating very hot soup, as it can reopen the wound on your tooth socket. It is better to blend the soup so that hard pieces of its contents do not enter the cavity from the tooth extraction.
2. Mashed Potatoes
Potatoes are high in fiber and are a convenient and beneficial food for the recovery period after your tooth extraction. This food, like soup, is soft and its consumption will not cause problems for your sensitive teeth and gums.
3. Bananas
If you feel hungry after your tooth extraction, mash a banana with a fork and eat it on the opposite side of the extracted tooth. Bananas are a soft food rich in potassium, manganese, and vitamin B6, all of which are beneficial for oral health and hygiene.
4. Eggs
Another beneficial food for after tooth extraction is eggs. Eggs are a complete meal, rich in protein, that will keep you full for a long time without putting any pressure on your teeth or gums. The specialists at Dr. Bonyanian’s dental clinic suggest that you use pasteurized or omega-3 enriched eggs after your dental surgery, as the omega-3 fatty acids in these eggs help in healing the wound from your tooth extraction.
5. Steamed Meat or Chicken
Boil or steam meat or chicken. This form of meat and chicken is one of the best options to add to your diet after dental surgery and will be very effective in reducing inflammation and jaw pain.
Read More: Painless Tooth Extraction
6. Cooked Legumes
Do not overlook cooked legumes like chickpeas, lentils, and beans. These legumes are very soft and are very rich sources of protein and fiber. You can consume these legumes in the form of hummus, canned beans, or in a thick soup (Aash).
7. Pumpkin
Pumpkin has a very soft texture and can be an excellent food for after your tooth extraction. This fruit is rich in vitamins A, C, and E, minerals, and potassium, and by strengthening your body’s immune system, it shortens the recovery period after your dental surgery.
For a free dental consultation regarding the tooth extraction process and its aftercare, you can use the form below.
Additional Tips Regarding Foods to Eat After Tooth Extraction
- Hot foods and drinks irritate your surgical site. In contrast, cold foods will soothe the pain from dental surgery.
- Eat with the side of your mouth opposite to the surgical site.
- After the first 24 hours, drink beverages with a straw to avoid disturbing the blood clot at the surgical site.
- Hold the food on your tongue for a bit to let your saliva soften it further.
- Preferably, for a week, consume fruit juices like apple juice, carrot juice, and orange juice instead of whole fruits.
What to Eat After Wisdom Tooth Extraction?
The dental specialists at Dr. Bonyanian’s clinic suggest that you eat soft foods that do not require much chewing after your wisdom tooth extraction. Furthermore, because the process of chewing food is difficult for someone who has had a wisdom tooth extracted, your digestive system’s function may also be disrupted. Soft foods prevent these problems from occurring. Eating ice cream after wisdom tooth extraction is also recommended. All kinds of smoothies, shakes, ice cream, dairy products, and foods like soup and custard are suitable options for after wisdom tooth extraction.
If you wish to know the price of wisdom tooth extraction, you can read the page related to the cost of wisdom tooth surgery.
List of Suitable Foods for Those Who Have Had a Tooth Extracted
After a tooth extraction, the body needs rest and proper nutrition to go through the healing process well and to heal the wounds and inflammation caused by the extraction. Therefore, you should help speed up this process by choosing suitable foods for the period after your tooth extraction. Below, we provide a list of foods you can eat after your tooth extraction:
- Vegetable soup, chicken soup, or broth, either blended or with very soft and small pieces.
- Mashed potatoes, mashed carrots, or even mashed pumpkin.
- Greek yogurt, fruit yogurt, and probiotic yogurt.
- Ice cream without chocolate chips or nuts.
- Milkshakes.
- Natural fruit juices without pulp.
- Jelly.
- Boiled or scrambled eggs.
- Cooked or steamed white fish.
- Cooked and shredded chicken.
- Soft-cooked rice (softer than usual) without the crispy bottom part (tahdig).
- Noodles and pasta.
Drinking Milk After Tooth Extraction
There is no problem with drinking milk after a tooth extraction. In fact, since milk contains calcium and protein, it helps in the faster healing of your gums. Now, if the milk is cold, that’s even better because cold milk can help reduce inflammation and soothe your pain. However, if you plan to drink milk after your tooth extraction or surgery, you should pay attention to a few points. First, you should avoid drinking hot milk, as hot milk may irritate the wounds in the surgical area. Second, it is better to use low-fat milk, because high fat content can cause a feeling of heaviness and discomfort. Third, in the initial hours after the tooth extraction, you should avoid consuming liquids with a straw to prevent damage to the blood clot formed at the surgical site.
What to Eat After Dental Surgery?
In the first few days after dental surgery, it is better to consume soft and liquid foods that are at a moderate temperature to avoid putting pressure on your damaged gums. By foods with a moderate temperature, we mean foods that are neither too hot nor too cold, as excessive heat or cold will irritate your gums and cause further damage to the surgical area. So, if you have had dental surgery, it is better to eat foods that are easily chewed and are softer than their usual state until the surgical area is fully healed. Drinking enough water, more than usual, also helps in the faster healing of the gums in the surgical area. This is because water keeps the body hydrated and eliminates bacteria that can grow in the mouth and teeth area, reducing the chance of facial swelling after tooth extraction.
Of course, don’t worry, because this situation won’t last forever. As time passes and your gums heal, you can gradually add more solid foods to your diet and return to your normal routine.
What Foods to Avoid After Dental Surgery?
Just as some foods help in the faster healing of your dental surgery site, other foods cause irritation to the surgical site and prolong your treatment period. Some of these foods include:
Hard and Chewy Foods
- Nuts and dried fruits
- Hard fruits and vegetables like apples, carrots, and celery
- Red meat
- Hard bread
Spicy and Acidic Foods
- Peppers
- Tomato sauce
- Alcohol
- Citrus fruits
- Vinegar
Sticky Foods
- Taffy
- Chewing gum
Hot Foods and Drinks
- Hot coffee and tea
Final Summary
If you have recently had one or more of your teeth extracted, you must help ensure a faster recovery and a successful, problem-free surgery by following a suitable diet. This diet should include soft and relatively cold foods that are high in protein and help heal the wounds caused by your tooth extraction.
Dr. Bonyanian’s Dental Clinic is one of the best dental clinics in Tehran. A facility that, with its experienced and skilled dentists, is ready to provide dental surgery services to you, our dear clients.
You can call 00982188539720 to get an appointment or visit our clinic located at Unit 7, No. 22, 6th West Street, Ahmad Qasir (Bokharest) Street, Arjantin Square, Tehran.
Dr. Nazi Bonyanian
Dental Surgeon (DDS) — Medical Council Number: 138662
Graduate of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences with over 15 years of experience in implants, laminates, and oral and dental surgery.
Address: No. 22, Unit 7, West Alley 6, Bokharest Street, Argentina Sq., Tehran, Iran
Phone: +98-21-88539720 | WhatsApp: +98-912-514-2202
Email: info@drbonyanian.com
Working Hours: Sat–Wed 09:00–20:00 | Thu 09:00–14:00 | Friday Closed
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