What Summer Foods Can You Enjoy with Dental Implants?

So, let’s say you’ve decided to get dental implants this summer to replace your missing teeth. Now that you’ve restored your smile, you want to know which seasonal favorites you can bite into again. Should you continue to stick with softer foods? Is meat back on the menu? Just what summery fare are you now allowed to eat? Well, your dentist in Love Field is here to help! Here’s a summary of how dental implants can let you have most summer foods and drinks with proper discretion.

Dental Implants: A Brief Review

As you may already know, dental implants are artificial teeth that restore the appearance and functionality of your natural smile. Composed of titanium posts, they fit into the gaps left by tooth loss. From there, these posts fuse with the surrounding jawbone in a process known as osseointegration. Once the fusion has progressed enough, implants are capped with dental crowns that make them look natural and lifelike.

Performance-wise, implants let you talk and chew more effectively than alternative treatments. In fact, they can generate a bite force between seventy-to-ninety percent of one’s natural chewing power. Due to being a long-lasting and comfortable restoration method, they allow any patient to smile, eat, and speak confidently.

So, What Summer Foods Can I Eat Freely?

Once your implants have completely fused with your jawbone, you can eat pretty much any summer specialty you want. Whether it’s steak, hamburgers, or BBQ, you’ll have the bite force necessary to chew through tougher meats. The same applies to season-appropriate snacks as well, including potato chips, apples, baby carrots, etc.

If you aren’t sure about a particular food, give your dentist a call. This way, they can give you the best advice for your smile.

What Summer Foods Should I Eat with Discretion?

While your implants enable you to eat most summer products, you should still exercise caution around a few. These include:

• Sugary drinks: As tasty as these drinks are, they can eat away at tooth enamel and porcelain alike.
• Hot dogs: Hot dogs have saturated fats that, in excess, can trigger gum inflammation that causes implant failure.
• Corn on the cob: Kernels can get stuck between an implant (or natural tooth) and your gums after you’ve bitten directly into a corn on the cob.

Dental implants are an excellent treatment for those looking to have their favorite summer meals again. That said, take care of them with proper oral care to ensure they last a long time!

About the Author

Dr. Robert. E. Tafel has practiced dentistry in Texas’ Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex for over a decade. He’s well-versed in various dental services, including preventive, cosmetic, and restorative treatments. Furthermore, Dr. Tafel strives to make his procedures affordable by working with most major insurance providers. For those without insurance, he also accepts flexible financing plans. Dr. Tafel currently practices at Bear Creek Family Dentistry and can be reached at his website or by phone at (214)-350-5333.