As Alzheimer's or dementia progresses, getting a patient to eat a nutritious meal, or eat enough, can be a problem. Below see suggestions from a great Alzheimer's Reading Room website article.
1. What Color are Your Plates?
A study conducted at Boston University found that patients eating from red plates consumed 25 percent more food than those eating from white plates.
2. Make eye contact while eating.
Sit directly in front of the person and make eye contact while eating. Smile and wait for them to smile back at you. Then start eating without talking (you start eating). Keep quiet. Be very patient and keep making eye contact. Wait for them to follow your lead. You might have to do this for a while before it starts working. Remember, you are trying to break a bad pattern and replace with a good pattern.
3. Keep Your Mouth Shut.
Trying to convince a person living with Alzheimer's that they must eat is counter-productive. Trying to explain why they need to eat is counterproductive. The proper mind set is learning to be a guide. A good guide makes eye contact and smiles. A good guide demonstrates how to eat each and every time (like it is the first time, every time). The good guide does this with a smile on their face. Hopefully, by guiding rather than cajoling
you might get a patient to eat just enough.
