Learning to Eat after Getting New Dentures

Sometimes referred to as “false teeth”, dentures as artificial replacements for lost or missing teeth. These plastic tooth replacements are molded to fit into your mouth.

For several weeks following their insertion, they may feel awkward and uncomfortable before you become accustomed to them. Your mouth may produce more saliva than usual, and the dentures may slightly shift around your mouth. As your mouth heals, you may also have to endure a few sore spots.

It takes some time to get used to dentures as the muscles on your face adjust to the new sensations. These changes may distort your taste and also make it difficult to eat some foods. It’s advisable to start with soft foods that are easy to chew. You can start eating solid foods after the dentures settle in.

Learning to eat with dentures

Here are a few tips for eating when you have new dentures

• Begin with a liquid that features soft foods and purees: puddings, applesauce, chopped boiled eggs, cooked cereals, and soup broth.
• Avoid hot liquids and foods that may burn your mouth. Your judgment of food temperatures will be inaccurate as the denture provides insulation.
• Avoid holding liquids for more than a few moments in your mouth before swallowing to avoid loosening the dentures.
• With time, you can gradually start eating more solid foods, starting with soft diets. Cut solid food into tiny pieces.
• When chewing, distribute food to both sides in the rear of your mouth to keep your dentures stable as you eat.
• Chew thoroughly and slowly before swallowing. Avoid swallowing large pieces of un-chewed food to prevent choking.
• Chop fresh vegetables and fruits into thin pieces, slice them into thin slices, or cook them to make them easily chewable.
• Eat cereals and whole grain bread with liquids that prevent the food from sticking to your teeth. The liquids also facilitate chewing and swallowing.
• Replace tough read meats with fish, poultry, legumes, and eggs. If you have to eat red meats, stew or slow-cook them.
• To eat foods that need a strong bite, you can use denture adhesives. However, avoid sticky and hard foods.

Take it slow and expect some soreness as the muscles in your tongue and other parts of your mouth adjust to accommodate your dentures. It’s important that you use the right denture adhesives. In case you encounter any persistent problems, inform your family dentist Rockville MD, as soon as possible.

A final word

To eat a healthy diet, you need to chew your food, which is hard when you’ve just had dentures installed in your mouth. However, patiently following the directions of your dentists and the tips in this article will ensure that you have a complete recovery in a few weeks.

Most importantly, exercise caution when taking hard and chewy foods such as hard crusty bread, whole fresh fruits, tough red meats, almond or peanut butter, chewing gum, and coconut among others.

In case you experience problems such as persistent pain and mouth sores that don’t heal, or you experience prolonged difficulty getting used to the dentures, don’t be shy about asking your dentist for help.