Your teeth never feel better than after a professional cleaning! With plaque and tartar buildup gone and your teeth newly polished, it’s easy to feel great about your smile as you leave the dentist’s office.
With your teeth at their brightest, you might be wondering what you can do to maintain the benefits of a cleaning, including how long you should wait to eat. To find out, keep reading to learn more about how long you should wait to eat after a dental cleaning, as well as the reasons why!
How Long Should I Wait to Eat After a Dental Cleaning?
After a professional teeth cleaning, it is generally recommended that you wait at least 30 minutes to an hour before eating. This is especially true if you have had a fluoride treatment to strengthen tooth enamel as part of your cleaning.
Why Should I Wait to Eat After a Dental Cleaning?
Several factors can contribute to why you should wait, or why you might want to wait to eat after teeth cleaning. These factors include:
Sensitivity After Cleaning
Professional teeth cleaning goes much deeper than brushing and flossing at home. Your hygienist uses special tools to remove plaque and tartar buildup on the surfaces of teeth and along the gumline.
This deep cleaning can sometimes lead to temporary sensitivity in your teeth and gums. After cleaning, your gums may be slightly irritated, and your tooth enamel may feel more exposed once any plaque film has been removed.
Eating hard, crunchy, hot, or cold foods right away can make sensitivity worse. If your teeth feel sensitive after a teeth cleaning, it’s a good idea to wait a while before eating or drinking something that could cause discomfort.
Avoiding Stains
Removing the outer layer of plaque and tartar from the surface of teeth during a professional cleaning can temporarily make your teeth more porous. This makes them more susceptible to staining from foods like coffee, tea, berries, or deeply-colored sauces, like soy sauce or tamari.
To prevent unwanted stains and keep your teeth at their brightest, you should avoid highly pigmented foods and drinks immediately after your cleaning. Waiting to eat these foods gives your teeth time to re-mineralize and lowers your risk of unwanted stains.
Undoing the Benefits
While eating or drinking any food too soon after cleaning can undo the benefits of a professional teeth cleaning, sticky foods, like gummy candies and caramel, are most likely to stick to teeth and encourage new plaque growth.
It’s best to wait to eat any sticky food until you know you are going to brush your teeth right after. While sticky, sweet treats may be delicious, they are likely to leave your teeth feeling like they did before your professional cleaning.
Fluoride Treatment
If you are prone to tooth decay or gum disease, your dentist might recommend you end your cleaning with a fluoride treatment. Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that helps strengthen enamel and protect teeth against cavities.
Fluoride treatments typically need about 30 minutes to an hour to set properly. Once applied, it takes that length of time for the fluoride gel to be fully absorbed by the enamel.
While the fluoride is setting, it’s best to avoid eating and drinking, especially acidic or sugary foods. Eating too soon after a fluoride treatment can interfere with absorption and weaken effectiveness.
What Should I Eat After a Cleaning?
After an hour or two, as long as your teeth and gums feel fine, you can eat whatever you want after a professional teeth cleaning. The best foods for a healthy smile include:
- Cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products
- Fresh produce like apples, carrots, and celery
- Nutritious nuts, including walnuts and almonds
If your teeth and gums are sensitive, you might want to opt for softer, milder foods that don’t put pressure on your teeth when you bite and chew or irritate the gums. Good food options that are gentle on your teeth and gums after a cleaning are plain yogurt, soft fruits, and pureed or cream soups.
While you should wait at least 30 minutes before drinking anything after a fluoride treatment, you should stay hydrated after a cleaning. The best drink is plain water, as beverages like soda and fruit juice can be high in acids, which are harsh on freshly cleaned teeth.
How Can I Maintain the Effects of a Professional Teeth Cleaning?
To make the most of your cleaning and to maintain the health of your smile until your next visit to the dentist, here are some practical tips:
- Follow a good home oral health care routine, which includes brushing teeth twice a day for at least 5 minutes and flossing at least once a day
- Be consistent with your oral care routine and schedule bi-annual professional dental cleanings
- If you are prone to cavities, add an antibacterial mouthwash into your daily routine for extra protection against bacteria and plaque buildup
- Avoid habits that can harm your teeth, like eating sugary food in excess, drinking too much coffee or soda, and smoking
Generally, it is advisable to wait at least 30 minutes before eating after a teeth cleaning and at least an hour if you have had a cleaning and a fluoride treatment. Waiting to eat gives your teeth time to re-mineralize, allows fluoride to be fully absorbed, prevents irritation or discomfort, and ensures you get the maximum benefits from your professional teeth cleaning!
Is it time for you to have your teeth cleaned? Schedule an appointment at Merry Dental in Billerica, MA, today!