Coffee is the world’s most preferred non-alcoholic beverage. It begins your day, it sets the mood for the work, and it prepares you for the day ahead. There are multiple schools of thought that support drinking coffee and some that are against drinking coffee. However, we are not going to debate that for you. Instead, we would like to discuss the ramifications one might face if one drinks coffee after tooth extraction. While we do agree, that it could be painful how does it impact you? Moreover, we will also look into its consequences and how bad it could be. Let’s see what we find out.
What Is Tooth Extraction And Why Is It Done?
Tooth extraction is exactly what it means. It is the procedure that is done to take out the tooth. Usually, done with the help of a dentist, the tooth is pulled out from its cavity with the help of proper surgical tools. But why is it done? It could be due to the following-
1. Severe tooth decay- This happens when you don’t follow proper dental hygiene and the plaque accumulates on it. It can lead to germs finding their nest on it and hence it can make it weak and useless.
2. Advanced Periodontal disease- It is not the tooth that is a problem but the bone structure around it making the tooth too unstable to stand on its own. Your dentist might recommend tooth extraction in such cases.
3. Impacted wisdom teeth- While most of our teeth grow in childhood, the ones called third molars could wait until you are in your late adolescence Since they might not always have the space to stay around. To relieve the pressure, the dentist might want to remove some of them.
4. Malpositioned teeth- Sometimes the teeth grow and take up the space of the others. That is when they turn out to be a problem while eating or drinking. So you might need to undergo a tooth extraction.
Is It Harmful To Consume Coffee Following A Tooth Extraction?
No matter what the reason is tooth extraction cannot be an easy procedure. It should be treated like an operation and there are some things you should and you shouldn’t do. Our million-dollar question is about coffee and whether should it be taken after the procedure. The answer is no. It is not recommended to drink coffee after extracting the tooth. Actually, it is difficult to drink anything after the procedure but why is it particularly bad to drink coffee? It could be because of the following reasons-
1. Stimulation of blood flow- Most people love coffee because it lights them up. It is true for it is a stimulant and can help you be awake for longer periods. However, why is it bad to drink it after tooth extraction? So coffee keeps you awake by rushing the blood flow to your body. But when your tooth is extracted, it bleeds. But due to the clotting mechanism, the bleeding stops but when you drink coffee it increases the blood flow and when this affects the extraction site, it could be catastrophic. This means the healing could go longer.
2. Temperature sensitivity- Tooth extraction is a long process and it should be taken delicately. Once the tooth comes out, the jaw exposed is too soft to be tattered with. Coffee is a hot beverage which means it has the properties of a hot liquid that can increase the temperature of the body when we drink it. The same is true for your mouth. But when that happens, it could affect the extracted site. Not only can it lead to irritation but it also hamper the healing process. So drinking coffee might not be the best idea.
3. Drying effect- A lot of things need to be taken care of when your tooth is extracted. One of them is to keep it wet all the time. This can help the clotting process and can also aid the healing. But when you drink coffee, especially without water, it could dry your mouth. This means you won’t have enough moisture to be maintained in the tooth cavity. Nevertheless, this is problematic and could even open the wound.
4. Acidity- After the process, your major concern should be to get the site healed. Keeping it open for a long time could have an adverse impact on your dental health and that is why we may need to keep acidic things away from the mouth. However, coffee is acidic and can mess up the healing process along with lots of discomfort.
Tips To Drink Coffee After Tooth Extraction
Some of the guidelines to be followed while drinking a coffee after extracting a tooth include these-
- Avoid hot beverages- As stated above hot beverages can slow the whaling process significantly and that is why you should steer clear of them.
- Wait until clot formation- Never drink coffee immediately after the procedure as it can rush the blood flow to the areas and prevent blood clots from forming.
- Be mindful of straws- Even if you are drinking coffee after a little while, you might want to take care of the straw as its intervention can be painful and could injure the area further.
- Follow the dentist’s instructions- Your dentist is likely to provide a detailed instruction manual, follow it.
Conclusion
Coffee is a popular beverage and might have come to your rescue many times when you needed that fresh start. However, drinking it after a tooth extraction procedure could be nothing less than catastrophic. It can not only destroy the clotting cells but also vary the temperature in your mouth which could lead to further complications.
The main idea is to drink whatever keeps your mouth cool and initiates healing. You need your mouth to eat food and if the healing delays, the consequences could not be limited to dental health. Always follow the necessary guidelines by your healthcare provider and let them know if there are any problems.
