What Can You Eat After Dental Implants?

A key part of the dental implant treatment process is the time to recover and allow your implants to settle in after the surgery. Just like a number of dental treatments that you might receive from your regular dentist, this means you should be careful with what you eat - avoiding some foods that can have a negative impact on the healing process.  

As part of our consultation and treatment process, we ensure that every patient at 7oaks Clinic gets the best professional advice from our leading dental implant surgeons, and has all the information they need - including after treatment information, and what to avoid when eating and drinking immediately post-surgery.  

Eating After Dental Implant Surgery

In the initial time after dental implant surgery, your teeth, jaw and mouth are likely to be  highly tender and sore - and what you should eat at this stage is often as much about your comfort as aiding the healing process. Food temperature should also be a consideration, as foods that are too hot or too cold can often cause discomfort for a brief period of time after your implant treatment.

Soft food and liquids, such as soup, mashed potatoes, smoothies, and yoghurts can all be excellent options during your initial healing period. Ensuring that you’re eating a healthy diet even with these restricted options is essential, helping your body to recover and kick-start the healing process. Healing can take several weeks after getting a dental implant, so it’s also important to be careful when considering the introduction of harder food.

During the healing process, you may also be getting used to the feeling of having new teeth in your mouth, particularly if you have chosen a multiple dental implant treatment such as all-on-four or smile in a day - to help this process, gradual dietary changes can be essential, helping you to acclimatise to your new teeth. Don’t worry if you feel nervous about chewing and biting - that is very normal, especially if you have worried about loose or missing teeth for a long time.

Dental Implant Treatment Aftercare

One of the key health providers in the United Kingdom, NHS advice can be invaluable for many prospective dental implant patients. Their recommendations for looking after your mouth include: 

• You should be able to eat normally after your treatment, although your dentist may recommend a diet of soft foods initially.
  
  
• Do not have alcohol for 24 hours after your treatment, and avoid smoking for as long as possible both before and after your treatment. 
  
  
• If you have other dentures, you might not be able to wear them for up to 2 weeks after your treatment.
  
  
• Do not brush the area where you had your dental implant for 1 week after treatment. 
  
  
• Use a mouthwash that contains chlorhexidine to keep the area free of plaque (a sticky layer of bacteria that builds up on the teeth). 

Dental Implant Treatment Healing Tips

Whilst you might be tempted to avoid eating entirely to help manage pain and comfort levels, this can sometimes slow the healing process as your body does not get the nutrients it needs to effectively recover from your surgical procedure. Staying hydrated is also key for recovery, as well as helping you to get used to your new teeth. 

Take care of your mouth - after your surgery, rinse your mouth with salt water in the morning, after each meal, and before bed. This helps to clean the wound and reduces the impact of bacteria and plaque build up. You can also start brushing, but don’t brush the surgical site directly until advised by your dental surgeon.

Never smoke or use tobacco products - Smoking and using oral tobacco can impair healing and even in some cases cause complete implant failure. Whilst quitting can be difficult for many people, it can make the difference between the success and failure of your treatments. 

After Your Treatment

It is important to remember that no dental treatment is truly permanent, in the same way that natural teeth can be lost with poor dental care or when accidents occur. However, dental implants are regarded as the most direct replacement for natural teeth, offering dental solutions that (with proper care) can often last a lifetime.

Dental implant aftercare is vital in order to maximise the lifetime of your implants, as well as providing secondary benefits like caring for your remaining teeth and maintaining dental hygiene. Just like with natural teeth, to keep your dental implants healthy for life it’s important to properly clean them every day and see a dental professional regularly.

Dental implant patients must pay closer attention to flossing and brushing below the gum line in order to protect the bone structure that secures the implanted tooth in the mouth. Proper brushing also protects the tooth crown itself from chips and cracks. Lifestyle factors that increase your risk of gum disease, or other dental problems, should also be avoided to ensure that your implants last as long as possible.

For more information on dental implant treatments, what to do post-surgery, and long term aftercare of your dental implants, contact our expert team today.