Answered a question 6/18/2011 at 12:48 pm
Oh man, this is a tough one - it's like dealing with a pickly little kid but it's easier for the adult to get away.. ;) As they aged both of my parents seemed to live very savory or very sweet foods.
...Read MoreOh man, this is a tough one - it's like dealing with a pickly little kid but it's easier for the adult to get away.. ;) As they aged both of my parents seemed to live very savory or very sweet foods. I often wonder if their sense of taste was dulled with age too. Both had allergies and sinus issues so that could effect their sense of smell which means a persons sense of taste is dulled too... Anyway.. here are a few ideas that helped:
teriyaki sauce - i put it on chicken, pork, beef - the key was to find one that wasn't too tangy or too hot. I made my own after a while, if you do that remember that the "tang" comes from vinegar so I avoided too much of htat The sweet can come from orange concentrate, honey or sugar. Store bought was easiest and Yoshida's was their preferred sauce.
Fruit and cottage cheese - this was a SAVIOR because it was lower in sugar and higher in nutrients. Canned fruit was easier to eat with dentures - their favorites were canned peaches and pears but you can also find berries. I let this sit out for a bit and warm up, they really didn't like it too cold.
Stewed tomatoes with fresh herbs. - we're Italian so this was always a staple in our house. The older they got the more salt they poured on so I removed that and added a few drops of balsamic vinegar and fresh chopped oregano or marjoram.
For desserts - I added pureed fruit to plan yogurt and froze it. Be sure to strain any seeds from fruit or it will get under their dentures!! and hurt.
Squash with brown sugar - again, more sugar but if it gets them to eat, that's better than NOT eating. It's still calories and unless your elder is diabetic or obese, you should not have to worry. My folks didn't have to worry about either of those conditions so I had more flexibility.
One additional note about my mom, I tried to get her to help me in the kitchen. While she helped she tasted, often by the time dinner came around she had little to no appetite because she'd already eaten! it was just fine with me as long as she was eating - who cares about the timing.
It just occured to me to ask - do you suppose it would be smart to leave cookies and other food on the counter for them to pick on? If you got one of those cook books that "sneak" veggies and protein into kids diets, perhaps there's a cookie recipe there and leave those out for your elder...
Good luck and let us know what works.