Wisdom tooth removal can be a painful and uncomfortable process due to the swelling and bleeding that occurs immediately after surgery. While people may be prescribed antibiotics, and pain medication, and told to apply cold compresses to their face, we are always in search of new and better remedies.
Well, TikTok has popularized a new trend – drinking tons of pineapple juice before getting your wisdom teeth removed to help with recovery. How much truth is there to this trend and do we recommend it? Read on to find out.
Fads come and go on social media, but people have claimed anecdotal benefits from a user on TikTok’s recommendation to drink 64 oz of pineapple juice before wisdom tooth extraction. The benefits they ascribe to the pineapple juice include a reduction in swelling, inflammation, and pain.
When you dive deeper into this fad, you find some truth there. Pineapple juice does have the potential to improve your recovery by reducing swelling and inflammation and there’s one large reason for that.
Pineapple juice (and pineapple fruit) contains an enzyme called bromelain and studies performed on small samples have found that bromelain is particularly anti-inflammatory compared to other remedies and most people found relief from pain and inflammation after drinking pineapple juice.
Even though pineapple juice does contain an enzyme that is beneficial to wisdom tooth recovery, you would be better off eating the pineapple fruit directly rather than pineapple juice, which contains additives like extra sugar.
We also do not recommend drinking 64 oz of pineapple juice, as specialists only recommend drinking up to 8 oz a day. Drinking too much pineapple juice can cause unwanted effects like nausea, blood sugar spikes, upset stomach, and bloating.
This can be particularly harmful if you have a pre-existing condition like diabetes. Sugar is also very harmful to the health of your teeth enamel. Since you should only drink a small amount of pineapple juice in a day, you wouldn’t be able to ingest enough bromelain to benefit from its described effects.
If you’re interested in trying this experiment, talk to your dentist first. They are there to help manage your pain and discomfort through your recovery and can offer alternative methods of relief.
If your teen is dealing with wisdom tooth pain and discomfort, they likely need them removed. At Bayview Dental, we offer expert wisdom tooth removal and dental sedation to make your teen feel as comfortable as possible during the process. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Youngner and we can help you relieve discomfort during their recovery.