What Can’t You Eat with Dentures?

As you might know, dentures are high-quality tooth replacements. They look like natural teeth and even help you eat more than you would without teeth! Still, these traditional prosthetics can’t manage every meal. There are some foods that don’t match well with dentures. Should you try chewing them, they’d put your restored smile at risk. Fortunately, it’s not hard to learn which items aren’t denture-friendly and which are. To that end, here’s a summary of foods you can’t (and those you can) eat with the replacement teeth.

Foods You Shouldn’t Eat with Dentures

For your dentures to last a long time, you shouldn’t eat certain foods. The prosthetics could fail otherwise, forcing you to get replacements. You’d then have to spend yet more money.

In particular, make sure to avoid the following foods to preserve your dentures:

Steak

Many people love to eat steak as a summertime food. Unfortunately, it’s not a good choice if you have dentures.

You see, steaks are notoriously tough. Their texture and composition force you to chew frequently. This extra chewing can cause gum pain for denture wearers. Furthermore, it could damage the prosthetics’ teeth or even dislodge them.

If you must ever eat steak with dentures, cut the meat into bite-sized pieces first. Doing so will reduce the risk of tooth damage.

Popcorn

Popcorn is a very popular snack, especially for movies and other festivities. Even so, it tends to cause problems for dentures.

The issue is that popcorn kernels might get stuck in your mouth. If one wedges itself under your dentures, it’ll irritate you until it’s removed. Furthermore, delaying this removal might result in gum inflammation. You’d then face an increased risk of other oral complications.

Nuts

True, nuts have many health benefits and are quite nutritious. Despite such upsides, though, they can be rather dangerous for dentures.

Remember, nuts are usually a hard food. Most have shells that can only be chewed with molars. As such, they might damage your dentures if you bite too hard. The quality of your restorations would then decline.

What About Denture-Friendly Foods?

Luckily, there are plenty of denture-friendly foods you can still eat. These items won’t disturb your prosthetics or mouth tissues. As such, you’re free to have them as you please!

Many examples of denture-friendly foods exist. Breakfast-related ones include cereals, applesauce, fruit juices, and yogurt. Meanwhile, those you might have for other meals are hummus, ripe fruits, cooked or mashed veggies, and more. There are even treats that are fine for dentures, like cakes, ice cream, fruit smoothies, and pudding.

Of course, you should talk with your local dentist about the dietary details. They’ll give you a thorough listing of what you can and can’t eat with dentures. That way, your treatment results are sure to endure. In other words, you’ll get to enjoy your new smile for years to come!

As you can see, some foods just don’t mix well with dentures. That being the case, remember the ones listed above so your prosthetics avoid a potential accident!