Foods for a When a jaw is wired shut

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Krizzle4Rizzle
Krizzle4Rizzle Posts: 2,704 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Anyone have good food ideas for someone who has had their jaw wired shut?

Pls & Ty.

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  • SlickFootAnna
    SlickFootAnna Posts: 611 Member
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    My mom had those ensure shakes. That was all she could literally "eat".
  • Valera0466
    Valera0466 Posts: 319 Member
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    You can eat just about anything you just have to blend it really good with some liquid.
  • fitniknik
    fitniknik Posts: 713 Member
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    A friend of mine was assulted and they totaly shattered his jaw so he was drinking all this food. He "ate" all the same things everyone else ate, just blended them all up with some water. (this sounds disgusting right?)
  • hidensee
    hidensee Posts: 21 Member
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    You can puree any kind of food and get it through a straw but be prepared for nasty texture issues. puree savory things with broth or milk . Many people find it easier to just do prepared nutrition drinks like ensure (there are others) You can make milkshakes smoothies but really anything that you can puree you can do. another option is to thin baby foods to a drinkable consistency.
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
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    French Onion soup. That saved my life when I had all four of my wisdom teeth yanked out at once. Mashed potatoes are also a lifesaver.
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Smoothies! Try green smoothies or fruit ones, and add yogurt or tofu or whatever you want for protein.

    And pureed soups, too.

    I knew a guy who was reduced to a basically liquid diet after a mountain climbing accident that required wiring his jaws shut. He lost something like 20 lb from just not being able to eat his usual diet. I am sure it's not fun, but you can think of it as a nice side effect.
  • bethFromDayton
    bethFromDayton Posts: 112 Member
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    Tomato soup
    Broth
    apple sauce
    V-8 and other juices
    Smoothies

    For all of these, it can help to keep a towel handy to keep wiping the chin--when the jaw is splinted or wired shut, there tends to be a lot of spillage when trying to drink especially if the mouth area is numb from the medical work.

    Check with the doctor about straws--I was not permitted to use one for the first several weeks.

    Even when the jaw was splinted shut, I was able to use a small spoon towards the end of the time. I was also able to take small pieces of food that dissolves easily (graham crackers) and hold it in my mouth until it dissolved and I could swallow it.
  • reddi2roll
    reddi2roll Posts: 356 Member
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    Had my jaws wired for 8 weeks a long time ago. Carnation Instant Breakfast and Ice Cream Floats are always good but not diet friendly. I had a space in the back where my wisdom teeth were pulled so I could push scrambled eggs or a small piece of pretzel in there when I needed salt but the other options are far more healthy. Could never stand the taste of Ensure...yuk. Would definitely be a good time to try out all those smoothie recipes.
  • BoomstickChick
    BoomstickChick Posts: 428 Member
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    I never had my jaw wired shut, but I had all 4 impacted wisdom teeth out at once, had a reaction to the anesthetic and seizures resulted... I fell on my face and messed my jaw up. All I could eat was shakes, I used slim fast one cuz they were cheapest, and I also ate some banana baby food.
  • Queen_Adrock
    Queen_Adrock Posts: 130 Member
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    My friend would love pureeing Mexican foods -- melted cheese, salsa, light sour cream. It was like a creamy blended taco, apparently. It'd get protein and some vegetables in, too, and it's not as bland as some of the other things she could have.
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
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    Gosh, what an excellent diet plan. I would manage to ruin it by living on milkshakes. But really, anything you can put in a blender, right? Chicken soup even.
  • rubberbiscuit
    rubberbiscuit Posts: 128
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    I had a broken jaw when I was 16 and put everything in a blender. Broccoli was especially good blended up. Soup was another good standby. It's hard to eat enough protein, because lets face it, pork or chicken in a blender isn't very appetizing. Try greek yogurt and protein shakes for some protein. It's tough, and I lost a ton of weight. In those days I was pretty skinny to start with, so the weight loss was not wanted or healthy. Another tip, try stay away from the TV because every commercial for junk food will drive you crazy. That's when I first noticed just how ridiculously many commercials for food they play on TV.
  • tesslacoil
    tesslacoil Posts: 2 Member
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    When I had my jaw wired shut following a reconstructive surgery a few years ago, I ate:
    tomato soup
    pureed vegetables and fruits
    applesauce
    protein shakes
    broth
    yogurt

    I really don't recommend jamming anything and everything into a blender to make it "liquid". You'll end up with some gross stuff and puking through a wired jaw is something I never want to experience again.

    Make sure to have something fairly calorie-dense, as its easy to under-eat on a liquid diet and that can impact how well you heal.
  • Getyourshineon
    Getyourshineon Posts: 114
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    As a sophomore in H.S., a long time ago, I had jaw surgery to correct a bad overbite and the errosion of my jaw hinges. The surgery included breaking my jaw for the adjustments and of course wiring up for recovery. I was wired for 9 weeks.. I didn't really have a weight issue back then but I still loss weight, naturally. What I remember is that we started with really loaded malts and shakes because they were worried about malnutrion. By the end of 9 weeks we had blended everything from quiche, to enchiladas, to pizza and strained everything very well but the taste was fabulous after having nothing but shakes the first couple of weeks..

    Also ~ keep wire cutters around, just in case... if you get sick or choked it is better to be on the safe side.. I remember my mom had them everywhere and carried them to each of my teachers...

    Good luck!!
  • BaconMD
    BaconMD Posts: 1,165 Member
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    Raspberry ketones and Body by Vi
  • lilmissbamaqueen
    lilmissbamaqueen Posts: 184
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    I had jaw surgery when I was 19 and had my jaw rubber-banded shut for about 6 weeks. Lots of protein drinks, soups, and yes, I got desperate and put some chili in the blender. It was surprisingly good.
  • Krizzle4Rizzle
    Krizzle4Rizzle Posts: 2,704 Member
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    Thanks for all the good ideas. I never even thought of wire cutters.
  • RichardAceves
    RichardAceves Posts: 29 Member
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    A good friend of mine had this problem so we gave him pinto beans with rice and blended it and put it into a cake decorators bag it worked well and tasted good.
  • Thlayli13
    Thlayli13 Posts: 1
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    My broken jaw has been wired shut for 2 1/2 weeks now. I feel compelled to make some suggestions that will make "eating" more enjoyable than just plunging food with a syringe. In my opinion, that method becomes more of a "process" to get nutrition, rather than an enjoyable food experience. And let's face it, not being able to bite and chew is torture enough. I am 5'7" and 120 pounds, so getting adequate nutrition and not losing weight is vital to my health as well as my recovery. So far, not only have I not lost weight, I have actually gained back the few pounds that I had initially lost during the first week before wiring (I didn't know my jaw was broken, believe it or not). I have decided to see this situation as a way to be super-healthy, but also want my liquids to taste yummy. I have two "drinks" that I always have ready-made in the fridge. My sweet "smoothie" drink consists of NutraBio complex carbs powder (3 scoops), NutraBio Whey Protein Concentrate (4 scoops), soy milk, light cream, pureed strawberries, bananas, blueberries, and powdered flax seed, plain almonds and plain cashews (both nuts are non-salted, non-roasted and ground in a coffee grinder into a powder). I blend this all together in a good quality blender on puree, then liquefy. Now here's something I had to learn the hard way---blending is not enough! Even a grain of sand sized chunk or fruit seed/skin got trapped in my teeth! You HAVE to purchase a very fine strainer in order to filter out ANY pieces. I pour the blended drink into the strainer and used a few fingers to swirl around until the liquid drips down into the cup (I use a 2 cup measuring cup), and the solids stay in the strainer. Now I prefer hot, salty foods, so my "soup" meal (made the same way in the blender, then strained) always consists of an avocado, carrot juice, kale, chicken or beef broth, olive oil, a nut powder blend of pumpkin seed and sunflower seed, and whatever "base" soup I want to add and create. These first ingredients ensure that I have optimal nutrition, and especially healthy fats (to maintain weight), and also blend and taste good together. But the real Heaven is adding the soup base. If I add a can of split pea, I can also add ham or bacon and a few shakes of instant potatoes. A can of gumbo means I can add tortilla chips (yes!), sausage,shredded cheese, salsa, cilantro, and a few dashes of hot sauce. Italian wedding soup means adding meatballs. Once you blend these then strain well, you now have some of the most delicious BISQUES that you can heat up and drink like a wonderful strained yet thick soup. No straw, no syringe, just a super tasty bisque that's better than anything I've ever had at a restaurant. I hope this has also helped some of you who are going through the same thing that I and the OP are going through. There is no reason to food-suffer or be miserable, and as long as you incorporate healthy fats like olive oils, avocado, real butter and a high-quality protein supplement, your weight should stay steady. That is, unless you want to lose a few pounds!

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