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Medically Reviewed by Dr. Christopher Chan

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 Are you scheduled for wisdom teeth extraction in our Pasadena office? If so, you’ve probably heard that after your oral surgery, you’ll need to follow a soft food diet as your mouth heals from the procedure. But, what can you eat? And how long do you have to be on a soft food diet. Check out these tips:

After a wisdom teeth extraction, you should stay on a soft food diet for about a week.

  • Ideal soft foods after a wisdom teeth extraction include smoothies, juices, scrambled eggs, soups and yogurt.
  • Even though you may be consuming a lot of “liquefied” food, you definitely shouldn’t use a straw after wisdom teeth extraction. Using a straw or sucking can result in dislodging the blood clot that naturally forms over the wisdom teeth extraction sites, and can result in a painful complication called dry sockets, in which the jawbone tissue is exposed.
  • To enjoy liquefied foods after your wisdom teeth extraction, you should gently spoon the food into your mouth, and avoid slurping, which can also cause dry sockets.
  • Hard and crunchy foods should be avoided after wisdom teeth extraction, and you shouldn’t resume eating them until your Pasadena doctor at Foothill Center for Dental Implants and Oral Surgery advises you to do so.

Additional Wisdom Teeth Extraction Tips

In addition to eating a soft food diet after a wisdom teeth extraction in our Pasadena office, there are other tips you should follow to ensure you heal properly. These include:

  • Resting the day of your oral surgery, so that you can recover from the procedure. It is recommended that you lie down with your head elevated with pillows to promote proper blood flow to your head.
  • Icing your face on and off in 15-minute intervals, to reduce swelling and prevent post-operative pain.
  • Refraining from rinsing your mouth out for the first 24 hours after your surgery. After that, gently rinse your mouth out with warm salt water about 4 times a day, at least once after every time you eat.
  • Brushing away from the wisdom teeth extraction sites, so that you don’t accidentally dislodge the blood clot.
  • Refraining from smoking, as doing so may not only dislodge the blood clot forming over the extraction sites, but also make your recovery longer and more difficult.
  • Taking your pain medication exactly as prescribed, even if that means waking up in the middle of the night so that you don’t miss a dose.

Schedule Your Wisdom Teeth Extraction Appointment Today

If you’re in your teens or early twenties and feel pain in the back of your mouth, can feel your wisdom teeth erupting, or have bad breath that just won’t go away even immediately after you brush your teeth, these could be signs that your wisdom teeth are erupting or impacted, and need to be removed. In this case, visit the Pasadena office of Foothill Center for Dental Implants and Oral Surgery for a wisdom teeth extraction evaluation, which will include an oral examination and likely X-rays of your mouth to determine the exact location of your wisdom teeth.

To schedule an appointment at our Pasadena office today, call (626) 792-3161.