Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (2024)

Whether you have TMJ arthritis or problems with the muscles around your TMJs, it can be difficult to manage TMJ jaw pain. But since I have 12+ years of experience with this, and plenty of people don’t, I wanted to share my favorite food for TMJ flares. I mean, every year or so I go through a period of 1-2 months when I have a hard time chewing. That’s at least a year’s worth of time!

Take advantage of my experience and keep reading to learn more about what TMJ is and what I eat when I’m having problems with my TMJs.

I am not a doctor or medical professional of any kind. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Kate the (Almost) Great™!

Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (1)

What Is TMJ?

As the Mayo Clinic says, “The temporomandibular (tem-puh-roe-man-DIB-u-lur) joint (TMJ) acts like a sliding hinge, connecting your jawbone to your skull” (x). So while many people think “TMJ” is the name of a condition, it actually stands for the name of the joint. Mayo explains, “You have one joint on each side of your jaw. TMJ disorders — a type of temporomandibular disorder or TMD — can cause pain in your jaw joint and in the muscles that control jaw movement” (x).

What most people think when you say “I have TMJ” is temporomandibular joint and muscle disorders. The NIH says, “Temporomandibular joint and muscle disorders […] are a group of conditions that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and muscles that control jaw movement” (x).

In my case, a TMJ flare is a flare of arthritis in my TMJs.

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Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (2)

Now that we’ve covered what TMJ actually is, let’s get into foods and recipes! I’m sharing the products, categories, and recipes that I actually eat during my TMJ flares.

Food for TMJ Flares: Smoothies

Smoothies are, in general, some of the BEST things to eat when you’re having trouble with your jaw in any way. To be honest, though, I make the same version of a smoothie every single time. If you’re looking for other recipes, I’ve compiled a bunch of them in this Pinterest board.

That being said, here’s what my smoothie recipe is:

  • 1-2 cups of greens (spinach, kale, or a combination)
  • 1-2 cups of frozen berries
  • 1-2 cups of almond or oat milk
  • 1 spoonful of hemp protein powder
  • 1 spoonful of ground flax meal
  • 1 spoonful of chia seeds
  • 1 spoonful of creamy peanut butter

I’m able to have the same smoothie all the time because it doesn’t taste exactly the same every time. I generally have a mix of frozen berries, which I either buy in individual small bags or as a large frozen berry mix, and the exact composition of the berries in the smoothie drastically controls the taste.

Similarly, it tastes different if I use spinach or kale; if the milk is unsweetened, unsweetened vanilla (my favorite), or vanilla; if the milk is almond or oat; if I use a small or large amount of peanut butter; etc.

If you’re allergic to peanut butter or you don’t like it in your smoothies, you can use a banana instead. I personally hate bananas and can’t eat something with even the smallest hint of bananas, which is why I use peanut butter.

I also hate any flavored protein powder, and since I can’t have dairy, soy, or gluten, that eliminates most protein powders that aren’t hemp.

The flax seed meal and chia seeds provide fiber, which is great for a variety of reasons, one of which is it helps you stay full longer. This is absolutely essential if you struggle with chewing and/or are on increased steroids, which I always am when I have a TMJ flare.

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Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (3)

Now that we’ve covered smoothies, let’s chat about other foods and recipes!

Food for TMJ Flares: Baked Goods & Breakfasts

Pumpkin spice breakfast cookies

Pumpkin chocolate-chip muffins

Vegan gluten-free brownies

Glazed chocolate-avocado cupcakes

Overnight oats – The link sends you to my favorite recipe!

Chex cereal – To be clear, I eat cereal dry because I don’t like the taste of most non-dairy milks. But of the cereals I eat, I find Chex to be the easiest ones to eat with little work from my TMJs. I break them up with my tongue and the roof of my mouth, so there’s little work required from the joints themselves. It’s nearly impossible to do this with other cereals, especially Cheerios, which is the other cereal I eat the most.

7 Yummy Crockpot Recipes

Food for TMJ Flares: Sides, Appetizers, and Snacks

5 ingredient peanut butter energy bites

Baked potatoes

Quinoa salad

Sweet potato fries

Garlic and paprika roasted cauliflower

Apple sauce

Oranges

Lara bars

Enjoy Life soft-baked cookies – These can still be difficult to eat, but they’re way easier to eat than hard-baked cookies. As I mentioned previously, there are a bunch of foods that I can’t eat, and they aren’t limited to the ones I’ve already mentioned. Enjoy Life is an incredible brand that caters to food allergies, and they’re free of the most common allergens.

Alternatively, homemade cookies are the easiest to eat, as you can control how gooey, caky, etc. they are.

Peppers, cucumbers, and hummus – This is not to say that eating these (especially peppers) is easy; it’s just easier than other vegetables like raw carrots. But eating cucumbers is relatively easy! I’ve added hummus here because everything I eat is important when it’s hard for me to chew during a TMJ flare. I need to get the most out of every meal and snack, so adding an easy-to-chew source of protein is essential.

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Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (4)

Food for TMJ Flares: Entrees

Sheet pan chili lime salmon

Slow cooker chicken with broccoli and sweet potatoes – This recipe and method of cooking make everything SO moist and it falls apart easily.

Slow cooker tomato, kale, and quinoa soup

Slow cooker seasoned chicken, green beans, and potatoes – The slow cooker really makes this all easier to chew than if it were cooked in the oven.

Sheet pan everything bagel chicken and veggies – The everything bagel seasoning keeps the chicken so moist that it’s pretty easy to chew!

Chicken and spinach skillet pasta with lemon and parmesan

Cauliflower Rice Bowls with Grilled Chicken

Crockpot lemon garlic butter chicken

The following recipes are from an ebook I bought from Abra’s Kitchen! I love them all, and I’m so happy with them. I strongly suggest checking out her blog and recipes, even though the following aren’t available without buying the ebook.

Greek kale and quinoa salad meal prep bowls

Spaghetti squash with spinach and chickpeas

Lemon thyme roasted sole and asparagus

Mediterranean sheet pan salmon with zucchini noodles

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Like this post? Share it! Then check out:

What’s In My Tool Box for Dealing with Chronic Pain, What Does Arthritis Pain Feel Like?, Arthritis Glossary: Frequently Used Words, What Is the Difference between Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis?

Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (5)

Kate Mitchell

Kate Mitchell is a blogger, chronic illness patient, and advocate who helps people understand chronic illness and helps chronic illness patients live their best lives.

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Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal (2024)

FAQs

Food for TMJ Flares: The Best Recipes To Help Heal? ›

Give your TMJ a break by sticking to soft foods. Things like scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, smoothies, and soup are helpful options when you need to reduce strain on your jaw. Hard, crunchy foods, like nuts or carrots, will aggravate your TMJ and prolong your jaw soreness.

What should I eat with TMJ flare up? ›

When you're having a particularly bad flare-up, you may wish to switch to smoothies-and-soups, but otherwise, avoiding hard foods is usually sufficient. A diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods. This means eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, beans, and healthy fats.

How can I speed up the healing of TMJ? ›

Symptoms of TMJ don't have to be long-term, but they can be. To help speed up your recovery, take care of yourself through daily relaxation techniques and eating well (with soft foods), follow your doctor's treatment plan, and wear a custom-fit night guard from JS Dental Lab.

What are anti-inflammatory foods for TMJ? ›

Try including spinach, potatoes, avocados, sweet potatoes, and squash in your regular diet. Berries and melons also have a lot of antioxidants in them and can help reduce inflammation. Omega-3 fatty acids are also helpful. Omega-3 fatty acids can actually stop inflammation from forming.

What is a soft food diet for TMJ? ›

Try cooked winter squash, asparagus, and carrots or pureed soups such as squash, potato, and tomato. Grill peeled summer squash and zucchini slices or strips until they are soft. Dairy - Cottage cheese, yogurt, kefir, and soft cheese are easy on your TMJs and offer a source of protein.

How do you calm a TMJ nerve? ›

Treatment for TMJ Disorders
  1. Eating softer foods.
  2. Avoiding gum chewing and nail biting.
  3. Heat packs.
  4. Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, meditation, or biofeedback to reduce tension in the jaw.
  5. Medications such as analgesics, muscle relaxants, and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Is pasta OK for TMJ? ›

Grains & Starches

There's no shortage of options here: mashed potatoes, pasta, couscous, polenta, oatmeal, muffins and lots more. Just be careful that you don't choose a tough bread or anything with seeds or nuts.

What not to do during a TMJ flare up? ›

Staying away from triggers
  1. Don't eat hard or chewy foods. These include nuts, pretzels, popcorn, chips, gum, caramel, gummy candies, carrots, whole apples, hard breads, and even ice.
  2. Reschedule routine dental visits, like cleanings, if your jaw aches. ...
  3. Support your jaw when yawning. ...
  4. Don't do any activity that hurts.

What makes TMJ flare ups better? ›

If you have a TMJ flare-up, you can do the following to find relief from your pain and discomfort: Apply heat or ice to the affected area. Maintain a soft food diet, and avoid hard or chewy foods. Take over-the-counter pain relief options.

What is the best exercise for TMJ? ›

6 Exercises That Help With TMJ Pain
  • Resist Mouth-Closing. This involves adding pressure to your chin while closing your mouth. ...
  • Resist Mouth-Opening. You can also gently add pressure to your chin when opening your mouth. ...
  • Tongue Lifts. ...
  • The Oxford University Hospitals Exercise. ...
  • Jaw Slide Side-To-Side. ...
  • Jaw Forward Movement.
Oct 14, 2021

What not to eat with temporomandibular joint disorder? ›

Some examples of bad foods for TMJ pain are:
  • Chewy or tough meat, like steak.
  • Bagels, crusty bread, and other chewy baked goods.
  • Apples, carrots, and other hard fruits and vegetables.
  • Hard nuts.
  • Chewy or sticky candies.
  • Chewing gum.
Oct 3, 2022

Is oatmeal good for TMJ? ›

Starches like mashed potatoes, pasta and polenta are wise choices. Oatmeal and muffins should not irritate your TMJ pain, as long as there are no added nuts or other crunchy toppings. Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a balanced diet. Soft fruits like bananas are an excellent option.

How I'm naturally healing my TMJ? ›

Ways to cure TMJ naturally at home:
  1. Rest your jaw. ...
  2. Don't eat hard or chewy foods. ...
  3. If you're an athlete or exercise rigorously every week, you'll want to limit bouncing up and down (doing jumping jacks or box jumps) and tensing up your face and neck muscles when weightlifting.

Is salad good for TMJ? ›

Eating popcorn requires continuous jaw motions, which can worsen or cause TMJ pain. While healthy, eating chewy salads requires continuous chewing effort, which can cause further jaw pain and inflammation.

Is peanut butter good for TMJ? ›

Some great ideas for soft foods to try with a TMD are yogurt, oatmeal, protein smoothies, soft cheeses, rice, beans, eggs, hummus, peanut butter, quinoa, avocado, bananas, fish, tofu and ground meat.

What makes TMJ worse? ›

Things that make TMJ dysfunction worse

Poor posture. (This can place excess pressure on your neck, shoulder and facial muscles.) Chewing on pens, pencils or other items (a common “nervous habit” behavior). Chewing on ice or excessively chewing gum.

What not to do during a TMJ flare-up? ›

Staying away from triggers
  1. Don't eat hard or chewy foods. These include nuts, pretzels, popcorn, chips, gum, caramel, gummy candies, carrots, whole apples, hard breads, and even ice.
  2. Reschedule routine dental visits, like cleanings, if your jaw aches. ...
  3. Support your jaw when yawning. ...
  4. Don't do any activity that hurts.

What can I eat when my jaw hurts? ›

Do: Eat Soft Foods. Give your TMJ a break by sticking to soft foods. Things like scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, smoothies, and soup are helpful options when you need to reduce strain on your jaw. Hard, crunchy foods, like nuts or carrots, will aggravate your TMJ and prolong your jaw soreness.

How long does a typical TMJ flare-up last? ›

Average Duration of a Flare-up

Flare-ups vary from person to person, depending on the underlying cause or trigger. Whether TMJ disorder is actively being managed by a doctor can also influence how long a flare-up lasts. Most flare-ups last anywhere from two days to a few weeks.

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