The Diet You Need After Wisdom Teeth Removal

After removing your impacted wisdom teeth, that area in your jaws remains extremely sensitive and vulnerable to infections. If you are not careful with how you tend to it for the next few weeks, you risk complications to your bone tissue, which are difficult to treat.

The food you ingest now has the potential of weakening the stitches in the extraction area, or of introducing bacteria to it. This is why you need to follow a special diet, which focuses on soft foods that can be ingested without any damage to the still healing extraction area.

Following advice from HealthRow dentistry experts, we’ve synthesized a short guide on how and what to eat after extracting your wisdom teeth. If you stick by these principles, you will help the damaged area heal faster and you will minimize the risk for infections or other complications.

How to eat and a few tips for after the procedure of wisdom teeth removal

There are a few general guidelines you should stick to after having the extraction procedure. As long as you understand these principles, you will be able to tell yourself if a food you want to eat is a good idea or not.

We will still follow through with examples of breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes so you can get some menu inspiration. But, the most important part of this guide lies here, in explaining the diet you need after wisdom teeth removal.

This is what you should remember:

• Any rough foods, which you need to bite, chew or suck on are to be avoided. All these actions can create pressure on the stitched area of the extraction, peeling away the scabs that are trying to heal the tissue underneath.
• You should also avoid smoking during this time. The vacuum you create inside your mouth by puffing on a cigarette also counts as a potentially damaging sucking motion.
• Also, you need to avoid foods which can get into the delicate folds of the stitches and fester in there.
• Don’t eat or drink foods or drinks which are too hot, as they too can damage the healing area.
• To prevent infections, you should also wash your mouth gently with saltwater, 2-3 times a day.
• You can also use special products for oral hygiene, designed to be used after tooth extractions. For example, you can find special mouthwashes, stronger than the regular kind, in some drugstores. Ask a pharmacist for a recommendation.

This diet should be followed for 2 weeks after the wisdom teeth removal, or until the doctor clears you for returning to a regular diet.

Examples of breakfast dishes for after wisdom teeth removal

Here are a few examples and suggestions of breakfast dishes which are safe to eat after the wisdom teeth extraction procedure:

• Soft rice pudding, tapioca pudding and so on;
• Loosely prepared oatmeal with a little jam on the side (just make sure the jam is berry free, in order to avoid those little seeds that can scratch the healing extraction area);
• Soft scrambled eggs;
• Mashed potatoes;
• Soft fruit servings, as long as there are no berries or kiwi which can carry abrasive seeds.

Examples of lunch and dinner dishes for after wisdom teeth removal

If you need extra inspiration for lunch and dinner dishes suitable to eat after removing your wisdom teeth, you can also search the internet for ‘soft dishes ideas’ and similar searches.

There are people who need to be on a soft foods diet permanently due to various health issues. Thus, there are plenty of blogs, cookbooks, recipe ideas and advice about how to follow this diet. Getting some more inspiration for two weeks’ worth of dishes should be easy enough.

Our own suggestions for lunch and dinner ideas are these:

• Cream soups made from your favorite vegetables with cheese additions and so on (but no croutons!);
• Mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, with optional additions of melted cheese, a swirl of pesto for more flavor etc.;
• Hummus, which you can have again, in different variants, so that you don’t get bored;
• Avocado mash with a squeeze of lemon juice;
• Boiled cauliflower mash with grated Parmesan cheese;
• Protein shakes and smoothies with your favorite ingredients (variety is key since you have to stick to this diet for a while);
• Cottage cheese spiced with salt and drizzle of olive oil;
• Soft polenta with a bit of cheese and cream.

Examples of Desserts Suitable for After Wisdom Teeth Removal

Following the same guidelines, dessert shouldn’t be out of the question by default after removing your wisdom teeth. If you crave something sweet, there’s no reason you can’t have it, as long as you are careful to only choose soft, creamy desserts.

Here are a few examples and suggestions we recommend – these are all soft deserts for wisdom teeth:

• Soft fruit pie (if the pie is soft enough and you are able to eat it without chewing, go for it);
• Rice pudding, tapioca pudding with jam on the side;
• Soft fruit servings;
• Applesauce or other fruit mousses;
• Chocolate and vanilla flour-based puddings.

If you are patient and maintain a proper oral hygiene, you’ll be out of the woods soon enough. In the meantime, this diet isn’t half bad and still allows you to enjoy things you like. Good luck with your recovery!

Frequently Asked Questions

Ethel Huizar

Co-Founder at HealthRow

Ethel Huizar is a Dental Hygienist and a Co-Founder at HealthRow. She has graduated from Master of Public Health, University of Colorado. While exploring health-related topics, writing and doing research, she aims to inform her readers about the number of ways to lead healthier lives.