A soft diet consists of foods that can easily be digested, and is usually recommended after having surgery on your neck, stomach or head. Your foods should be mashed, pureed or chopped to reduce digestion difficulty. Grains, raw fruit and vegetables, and spicy foods that upset your stomach should be avoided until your doctor approves. If you eat three large meals daily, reduce them in size and eat five small meals a day to allow proper digestion. If you experience any pain or unusual side effects from the diet, contact your physician immediately.
Fruits and Vegetables
Raw fruit and vegetables are harsh on the stomach and can cause digestive issues. Cook vegetables until they are soft in texture, or eat canned vegetables to reduce the need to chew your food. Avoid eating corn, peas, carrots and celery due to their hardness. Replace your raw fruit with canned fruit, but make sure your canned fruit is not high in sugar or syrup. Sugary canned fruit can cause spikes in your blood glucose level. Mash and chop the fruit and vegetables so that they can be easily swallowed. Do not eat fruits that have skin or seeds. To aid in digestion, use a food processor to blend your fruit and vegetables.
Starches
According to Drugs.com, avoid eating grains that are high in fiber in order to ease digestion. Some of these starches include bagels, French or sourdough bread, tortilla chips, whole-wheat crackers, taco shells and breads and cereals that contain seeds or dried fruit. Soft breads such as tortillas and bread rolls, cooked cereal, pancakes, waffles and saltine crackers softened in soup are suitable foods for your soft diet.
Meats and Dairy
Tough and stringy meats should be avoided, and replaced with broken-up soft meats. Bacon, sausage and other tough meats put too much stress on the jaw while chewing and should be eliminated from your diet unless medical instructions say otherwise. Cook meats until they are moist and tender, and mash them up for easy consumption. You can use broths, sauces and marinades to assist in softening your meat while cooking, or include meats in your soup to soften. According to Drugs.com, cut your chicken and other meats into 1/4-inch cubes.
