How to remove food stuck in soft palate

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Stay calm and drink soda
Dislodge it with more food
Use a chopstick (gently)
How do doctors remove stuck food?
How do you get something out that's stuck in the back of your mouth?
How long does it take for something stuck in your throat to go away?

Posted on Mon, 25 Aug 2014

Question: Last night I threw up and I think a piece of food got stuck up behind my soft pallet and I can.feel it. I know.something is there and it feels like it is going to drop down but stays put. If I swallow, it goes back up then a few minutes later, same thing happens.

Brief Answer:
food in nasopharynx. Consult with the doctor.

Detailed Answer:
Hi, thanks for your query.
Food stuck behind or above the soft palate, which means food in nasopharynx, can cause foreign body sensation and nose block.
You can violently inhale from nose and nasopharynx and pull out the food stuff.
If not, consult with a doctor, and get endoscopic examination and removal of the food stuff.
There is no home remedy for it.
Hope my answers have helped you. Pleased to help you further. Thanks.

Follow up: Dr. Deepashree (8 hours later)

Should I be worried of the food rotting and turning into an infection?

Brief Answer:
Do not worry.

Detailed Answer:
Hi, thanks for your query.
Usually small pieces of food in the nasopharynx come to the throat naturally along with the mucous flow.
If symptoms persists, for more than 48 hrs, then please consult with the doctor.
But food won't get rotten and infected.
Hope my answers have helped you. Thanks.

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So, the first thing to try is: Nothing. Your body is a pretty efficient food-dissolving machine, and there is a decent chance that your saliva and action of swallowing will eventually break down the offending piece of food enough to dislodge it. Wait a few hours to see if this works out for you.

While you’re waiting, drink some soda. There’s some evidence that soda—specifically Coca-Cola—can help break down food stuck in the esophagus, so slamming a few cans of while you’re busy not panicking about the obstruction in your throat is a low-effort method worth attempting. Worst-case scenario is you’re now over-caffeinated and bloated in addition to having a hunk of food in your throat.

A related treatment is to take a product like Gas-X that contains the active ingredient simethicone. These over-the-counter medications release carbon dioxide in your stomach and esophagus, which can help force the food loose. Similarly, Alka-Seltzer or baking soda in water (any kind of effervescing product, really) might do the trick.

Dislodge it with more food

If waiting it out doesn’t work and all the soda in the world is just giving you a stomachache, there are a few more things you can try.

Eating more can help, especially if you try a soft, moist food—bread dipped in something will form a thick, textured blob that might grab onto the interloping piece of food and pull it down with it as you swallow. If damp bread doesn’t sound good, try eating some banana, which has a similar consistency.

Another effective method is to eat some butter. The theory is that butter will “lubricate” your esophagus, reducing the friction that’s holding your hunk of food in place.

None of these tricks worked for me, but they’re safe and easy enough to try, so they are worth a shot.

Use a chopstick (gently)

I started to worry about going to sleep with this thing stuck in the back of my throat and aspirating it, which meant I either had to try something drastic or head to the emergency room. (I should note here that going to the ER is by far the more reasonable thing to do, so that is my official advice if the tricks above don’t work. However, I’ve never been a reasonable person.) As I could literally see the spinach back there. I figured all I needed to do was manually manipulate the hunk of greeny death and I’d be free of my nightmare.

I couldn’t quite reach it with my finger (I considered the possibility that inducing vomiting would dislodge it, but I also considered the possibility that it wouldn’t, and so held it in reserve). Instead, I grabbed a chopstick. With a flashlight in one hand and the chopstick in the other, eyes watering and gag reflex fully engaged, I went in there like I was playing a Blumhouse version of the game Operation and nudged that piece of spinach out of the way. A second later, I was able to spit it into the sink. Sweet relief

Do I recommend the chopstick method? Not unreservedly. There are probably a dozen ways it could have gone wrong. But it did work. I avoided a trip to the ER and immediately felt 100 percent better. If this ever happens to you, as long as you can breathe normally, the best thing to do is relax and just keep swallowing, while indulging in some soft foods and fizzy drinks. Chances are they’ll take care of it. Most importantly: If this has never happened to you, be sure to chew your food thoroughly so it never does.

How do doctors remove stuck food?

An endoscopy may be done if the food does not pass. A scope will be passed through the mouth and down the throat. Small tools will be passed down the tube to remove the food or push it down to the stomach. The doctor will look for possible reasons the food was blocked.

How do you get something out that's stuck in the back of your mouth?

Carefully use the tip of a wooden toothpick to slide the particle firmly and slowly from its position. If the item between your teeth doesn't move, try flossing or rinsing again. You can also try gently wedging the tip of the toothpick between your teeth to make space and try flossing again.