Health Tips
Some guidelines for a person suffering from Alzheimer’s:
- Eat a balanced, nutritious diet with a variety of foods from each food group.
- Include 4-5 servings of vegetables and 1-2 servings of fruits daily.
- Avoid fried foods. Limit intake of foods with high saturated fat and cholesterol content such as egg yolk, meat, butter, cream and so on.
- Cut down on intake of refined sugars.
- Include turmeric powder in food preparations.
- Use less salt while cooking.
- Incorporate physical activity in your lifestyle.
Here are certain tips that can help caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s:
- Limit distractions - Serve meals in quiet surroundings, away from television and other distractions.
- Keep the table setting simple - Avoid placing items on the table like a fruit basket or table arrangements that may confuse the person.
- Check the food temperature - People with Alzheimer’s are unaware if any food or beverage is too hot to eat or drink.
- Serve only one or two foods at a time - Serving more than 1-2 foods at a time can confuse the patient.
- Be flexible regarding food preferences - Keep personal preferences in mind when preparing food. People with Alzheimer’s may develop new food preferences or reject foods that they liked in the past.
- Give the person plenty of time to eat - Remind them to chew and swallow food carefully.
- Eat together - Make eating at least one meal like lunch or dinner a family event so that the person looks forward to eating meals.
- Serve finger foods - Bite-sized foods that are easy to pick and eat such as orange segments, cottage cheese cubes or steamed cauliflower pieces are preferable.
