What is a ‘soft diet’?
A soft diet consists of foods that are tender, moist, easily mashed with a fork and that need minimal chewing to be swallowed. It does not mean a totally blended or pureed diet.
Whilst having a soft diet some parents worry about ensuring a healthy and balanced diet. There are lots of suitable options that you can have to achieve this.
Why do I have to have a ‘soft diet’?
Following a surgery involving the palate you will be advised to have a ‘soft diet’, generally for around four weeks following the date of surgery. The reason for this is because following surgery your palate/ surgical incision site will be very fragile for the first few weeks.
It is very important to avoid any hard or crunchy foods which may possibly cause breakdown of the site.
What foods am I allowed?
What foods should I avoid?
As a rule, avoid any foods that are sharp, crunchy, chewy, spicy or citrusy. Also, avoid drinking through a straw or bottle as these can rub on the palate and cause wound breakdown.
General tips
Following a cleft surgery, you may struggle with discomfort in your mouth or may initially find it more tiring to eat large amounts of food, therefore we recommend having smaller amounts of food more frequently. To help to soften foods you could try adding sauces, gravy, butter, cream or custards to food. Alternatively, you could chop, mince or mash foods to help soften.
Maintaining good oral hygiene is important to help reduce any post-operative infections in the mouth
It is very important to regularly rinse your mouth with water following mealtimes. This will help to keep your mouth nice and clean and reduce the risk of food sticking to your wound incision site.
For further information
PALS (Patient Advice and Liaison Service)
PALS (Patient Advice and Liaison Service) for help, advice and information about NHS services. You can contact them on freephone 0800 032 02 02, email [email protected].
