Soft Diet After Buccal Fat Surgery
Eating is part of recovery after buccal fat removal, and meals are also a chance to notice changes in your cheeks. Start with questions to ask your surgeon and changes to watch for while you eat.
Chewing, soft foods and normal meals again
Your surgeon decides what you should eat and for how long. Before the procedure, ask:
- Which foods should I avoid, and for how long?
- Is there anything I should chew on one side only?
- When can I go back to my normal diet?
- What should I do if eating becomes painful?
Write the answers down and keep them where you will eat. To see what the procedure itself involves, the ASPS buccal fat removal procedure steps are a helpful reference.
What to watch for while you eat
Meals give you a regular daily moment to compare how your mouth and cheeks feel. Things to notice:
- Pain that grows when you chew instead of easing
- Swelling that is bigger on one cheek than the other
- Trouble opening your mouth that is getting worse, not better
- Anything coming from the inside of the cheek that your surgeon did not describe
Ask which of these your surgeon wants to hear about the same day, and how to reach them.
Keep a simple log
Note what you ate, how it felt, and a quick look at both cheeks in the same light. A few lines per day makes it easier to describe a change on a call. A photo each day lets you compare the cheeks over time.
Where this fits in the bigger picture
If you are still deciding on the procedure, a plastic surgery society's article hollow cheeks: a focus on buccal fat removal is a good read for the questions it raises. Take those to a consultation.
Meals planned, contacts nearby
Get the diet instructions in writing, plan your meals before surgery, and keep your surgeon's contact details nearby. Call when something on your watch list changes quickly, rather than waiting for the next scheduled visit.
Read all of this as general information, not medical advice. Your own surgeon is the right person to judge your situation.