Once you get All-on-4 dental implants, it’s tempting to find and eat hard foods right away. You finally have a full, complete smile again; you naturally want to use it. Even so, you should actually let your mouth heal before you chow down on normal meals again. But when exactly can you eat after getting All-on-4 dental implants? If you’re interested, your Chesapeake dentist will gladly provide some answers for you below.
How are All-on-4 Implants Placed?
Consider first how All-on-4 dental implants are placed. After all, it’s this process that makes patients wait before they can eat “normally.”
Dentists place All-on-4 implants similarly to single implant posts. Overall, the major difference is that the former are set throughout the mouth to support a prosthetic tooth arch. (A Dentist will even connect temporary teeth to them after surgery to fulfill this role.) This multi-site work thus takes longer, involves more incisions, and has greater effects than a single-tooth implant treatment.
Also like “regular” implants, All-on-4 implants slowly fuse with your jaw. This process of “osseointegration” makes the placed posts permanent parts of your mouth. When it’s finished, it ensures your tooth replacements are deeply stable.
When Can You Eat After Placement?
Given these facts, you can’t have tough foods right after getting All-on-4 implants. You must instead wait three or four months (or longer) before you can eat as you like.
Note that All-on-4 implant surgery is invasive. Since it involves several treatment sites, this procedure makes incisions in multiple parts of your gums. The placed posts are also unnatural, so your jaw’s bone tissue needs time to fuse around and stabilize them. Three to four months is how long you’ll need for your gums to heal and your implant posts to steady themselves.
If you try to eat normally before the 3-to-4-month mark, you’ll put your treatment results at risk. Hard, chewy, and sticky foods could dislodge your posts, cause infections, etc.
What Can You Do to Maintain Results?
Various things can help you maintain your All-on-4 implants over time. In particular, you should consider doing the following:
- Follow Post-Op Instructions – By adhering to your dentist’s post-op guidelines, you’ll promote healing and avoid treatment-related complications.
- Keep Your Mouth Clean – Gentle brushing and rinsing will keep your mouth clean, thus reducing your risk of post-surgery infections.
- Remember to Hydrate – If you drink plenty of water, the liquid will aid tissue repair and flush out harmful oral toxins.
- Attend Follow-Up Visits – As time passes, attend follow-up visits with your dentist. These sessions provide professional monitoring and timely interventions as needed.
While they do make you wait to eat freely, All-on-4 implants are still worth it. Keep that in mind as you pursue your treatment!
About the Practice
Troisi Dentistry is based in Chesapeake, VA. Led by Dr. Lucia Troisi, our practice is always eager to make smiles strong, stunning, and stable. It’s for this reason we offer comprehensive dentistry, with our treatments ranging from dental checkups and cleanings to All-on-4 dental implants. Whatever your grin needs to thrive, rest assured – our team is on it! For more details or to book a visit, please contact us on our website or by phone at (757)-548-1611.