Nutrition: Tips, Equipment and Techniques
This Fact Sheet accompanies the Nutrition class in the Techniques for Everyday Tasks classroom.
Reasons for malnutrition:
- Inability to fix a meal
- Forgetting to eat
- Inability to recognize hunger
- Decreased sense of smell and/or taste
- Losing interest in food, or hoarding food
- Inability to recognize difference between food and non-food items
- Difficulties with swallowing
- Poorly fitted dentures or some type of mouth discomfort
- Side effects of medication
- Constipation
- Depression
- Some medical condition
Signs of swallowing problems:
- Sudden or increasing weight loss
- Fear of eating or choking
- Complaints of food catching in throat
- Elevated temperatures accompanying congestion
- Wet sound voice during or after feeding
- Reflux or regurgitation
- Stuffing mouth
- Reluctance to eat
- Extremely rapid or slow eating
- Drooling or excessive saliva
- Food pocketing
- Coughing or choking during or after meals
- Coughing up food particles
- Difficulty swallowing food
- Consistent throat clearing during eating
Tips to increase or maintain adequate nutritional intake:
- Serve favorite foods at beginning of meal to encourage eating
- Serve cooked cereal and/or liquids thickened with fruit sauces if taking liquids is a problem
- Serve strained, pureed food, powdered protein and ice cream if taking solids is a problem
- If given a food or drink choice, limit it to two
- Offer meals at regular times and in the same place
- Have several small meals instead of three large meals
- Have the main meal in the morning or early afternoon
- Start meal with the food that has the highest nutritional value
- Offer liquids frequently, and at room temperature
- Offer a variety of food, since a person’s food preferences may change over time
- Add extra nutrients to the diet if necessary
What to avoid
- Rushing through the meal
- Foods that may result in choking (nuts, popcorn, chips, raw vegetables)
- Dry, stringy meats that are hard to chew
- Food without nutritional value
Websites for Food Thickeners and Adaptive Eating Aids
- http://ecom1.sammonspreston.com/
- (for food thickener, and adaptive utensils and dishes, look under “kitchen and dining self helpers”)
- http://www.brucemedical.com/
- (for “Thick-it” look under “Foods/Beverages” then “Food and beverages thickeners”)
- http://www.caregiversmarketplace.com/
- (for “Thicken-Up” look under “Medical Nutrition” then “swallowing problems” then “view swallowing problems”)
- http://www.dynamic-living.com/
- (for adaptive utensils and dishes look under “Easy Dining”) (for Dycem placemats look under “Baking” then “Dycem mats”)
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