The type of food you eat can trigger your TMJ pain. Therefore, choosing the right and healthy diet is crucial for TMJ healing and for avoiding TMJ pain. Although stress and bruxism are the most common causes for TMJ disorder, TMJ pain flare up after eating chewy or hard food is not unusual. This is true especially if you have TMJ dysfunction.
Which Foods Patients with TMJ Disorder Should Avoid?
generally speaking, Chewy and hard diet are harmful to the TMJ. This kind of diet will overwork your chewing muscles and put a lot of strain on your TMJ. TMJ patients should a void the following food types:
- Chewing gum
- Sticky or hard candy
- Chewy bread and bagels
- Some fresh vegetables and fruits such as carrots.
- Hard nuts
- Chewing ice
- Hard meat
- Crunchy food
Moderation is the key when selecting the best diet for TMJ. The foods listed above might be used when you have no TMJ symptoms. You should use common sense when and what to avoid eating based on your current TMJ health condition. However, hard fruits and vegetables such as carrots cause no harm to your TMJ when cut in small pieces or cooked before eating them.
What are the Best Foods for TMJ?
Patients with TMJ disorder should eat soft healthy food that does not aggravate their TMJ pain. Therefore, some healthy diet should be avoided and patients with TMJ disorders should be careful of what they eat. The following food list is recommended for patients with TMJ disorder:
- Food that is not hard, chewy or crunchy. Liquid diet such as smoothies and soup are great choices for TMJ pain flare-ups. Soft diet such as baked potato, fish and eggs are great choices for patients with mild TMJ symptoms.
- Foods that promote your TMJ healing. Fruits, vegetables, and diet rich in fibers have some anti-inflammatory effect on the TMJ and are highly recommended.
- Diet supplements. TMJ patients might not be able to eat healthy diet. They may suffer from malnutrition. This why patients with TMJ disorder should use diet supplants such as multi vitamins and calcium to stay healthy.
Some Food Suggestions for Patients with TMJ Disorder
Here are some meals ideas for patients with TMJ disorder:
- Yogurt
- Smoothie
- Eggs
- Soups
- baked potato
- Pasta
- Noodles
- Ice cream
- Backed fish
- Cheese
- Fruits such as banana, water melon, oranges and other soft fruits
- Rice pudding
The above list is just a suggestion, there are plenty of healthy meals that are TMJ friendly. We are not asking TMJ patients to compromise and eat non-tasty food. Healthy food could be prepared and made tasty too.
Still have Questions on TMJ Disorder?
If you or someone you know have TMJ disorder and need help, contact us today at 323-933-3855 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Khalifeh at the Museum dental Center.