Oral health can have a huge overarching impact on your body and well-being which means that, if you’re dealing with issues like tooth decay, you’ll want to take steps to improve the situation. Depending on your circumstances, your dentist may recommend dental implant surgery to replace severely damaged teeth and strengthen any remaining teeth they’re able to save.
This procedure could have a transformative impact on everything from your ability to smile again to your overall health. Even better, most dental implant procedures now take no longer than a day.
Recovery is also surprisingly simple, and you can increase the chances of implant success by doing certain things in the immediate aftermath of your surgery. Namely, you’ll want to make sure you’re eating the right things for both comfort and implant protection, which is why we’ve put together a complete eating guide for your first 24 hours post-surgery.
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Keep it Soft
Once they’re fully healed, dental implants can open you up to a whole world of favourite foods that might’ve been off the menu for a while due to dental issues. However, you mustn’t jump straight into eating hard or sticky foods immediately after your procedure.
Instead, you should aim to eat solely soft foods for at least the next 48 hours. You may even find that these are all you can manage during your immediate recovery. Luckily, there are plenty of great soft food options that mean you can still enjoy your meals at this time, such as –
- A variety of blended soups
- Scrambled eggs
- Yoghurts
- Ice cream
- Porridge
- And more
After the first 24 hours, you may find that you can also start incorporating more textured foods like jacket potato (without the skin) and soft bread.
Avoid Heat
Most experts recommend avoiding hot foods to protect your implants and reduce your pain in the first 24 hours after dental implant surgery. You may also find that you’re more drawn to cold foods like ice cream, which can be incredibly soothing. Alternatively, options like cold smoothies can be great. You can eat warm foods but try to avoid consuming anything that’s piping hot. You should also steer well clear of hot drinks like tea and coffee at this time.
Think About Balance
A poor diet may well have gotten you into this position in the first place, and it’s all too easy to slip back into bad eating habits. However, it’s vital that you think about balance in your recovery diet, especially considering that many vitamins and nutrients actively aid the healing process.
Smoothies are a great option here and should include a variety of fruits and vegetables. To make these a complete meal, you could also add additional boosts like protein powder or peanut butter. Blended soups like vegetable soup or chicken broth can also be fantastic for giving you a much-needed boost during healing.
You should gradually be able to reintroduce all your favourite foods shortly after dental implant surgery. However, choosing these alternatives in the first 24-48 hours could ensure a far better recovery period and chance of implant success overall.