Hello, I dont post very often but I do know what you are going through as I have the same problem with my husband. He weighs 260 and wants to eat all night. I have to hide any sweets, fruits, bread,and etc but even that does not help. If I were to leave these things out, he would eat all of it in one night and has done it. He even gets cake mixes out of the pantry and eats them with a spoon. He has done the same with the ready made icing. The other day he was trying to eat a head of lettuce. He gets things out of the freezer and tries to eat them. I know what you're going through but I have no answers. If he were in a nursing home, he would not have access to these things but nursing homes are too expensive and I've already been through the Medicaid thing with my mom who also had Alzheimers. After she died they wanted my moms house and I know that as long as I'm living that I would have a home but I really dont want to involve Medicaid if I can help it. Alzheimers is just a very terrible and sad disease for us all.
My mother is overweight and also thinks she needs snacks at night because dinner is so early in AL. If she insists I buy low calorie ones but I tire of that since she does not need to consume more. If I were you I would have less of those things in the house. I will get her unsweetened applesauce. I feel as though my mother is the only overweight 88 year old around. It certainly doesn't help with all her other health issues I concern myself with and appointments I take her to. It is sad because I find it hard to really look at her.
Get a refrigerator door lock. There are locks for every type of refrigerator. Some locks work from the side and others from above. This is a safety issue as eating raw meat, for example, is dangerous. Consolidate all the food into as few cupboards as possible and lock those too. Again, it's a safety issue because eating raw flour is dangerous because it can harbor bacteria. You may need to childproof the entire kitchen at some point. The high doorknob is an excellent idea!
Because you know she wanders and eats, have low glycemic fruits such as cut-up melon on the counter.
She has this sad and difficult disease and should be somewhere someone is Licensed and more apt to Care for Mom. It gets worse here, where you may have even a problem with her trying to go out of the house. And her moods....YIKES!!!!
We have meals set up for each day. That's all gets, with healthy snacks (he weighs 304, down from 350lbs). The only way we could do it was plastic STOP signs posted on rooms he wasn't allowed in, and making him understand that (kitchen always off limits). Now since we LET him stay up all night if he wants, we just remove his wheelchair every night. Now he keeps himself busy in bed doing activities we set up for him.
In your case, I would put kitchen on the no-go-zone, and make sure he has some healthy snacks at bedside.
People Who suffer from Alzheimer's can easily forget they have eaten hence they crave food continuously. I suggest instead of locking cupboards and the refridgeratior to leave lots of fruit and snacks about so Your Mom can help Herself. To counteract sundowners I used to leave a low watt bulb on at night which helped a lot. This continuous eating will stop after a while as in the later stages Your Mom will not be able to eat. Do not worry Infinity as this behaviour is normal for Alzheimer's Sufferers.
Processed carbs (sugars and starches) are so addicting, especially with the additives put in them, like MSG. Perhaps replacing processed foods with healthier options will help. You mom might balk at eating raw carrots, but she might accept cooked carrots. If she can chew, maybe she would be willing to eat whole-grain crackers (Triskets, Rye Crisp, etc.) instead of saltines. And natural (no-sugar added) peanut butter, instead of the sugared version. If you can get green vegetables in her, that too might help. Perhaps you could stock up on frozen broccoli and cauliflower and cook a few portions at a time then refrigerate them in small food tubs. It might help to have cottage cheese and boiled eggs on hand, as well.
disease for us all.
Because you know she wanders and eats, have low glycemic fruits such as cut-up melon on the counter.
It gets worse here, where you may have even a problem with her trying to go out of the house. And her moods....YIKES!!!!
The only way we could do it was plastic STOP signs posted on rooms he wasn't allowed in, and making him understand that (kitchen always off limits).
Now since we LET him stay up all night if he wants, we just remove his wheelchair every night. Now he keeps himself busy in bed doing activities we set up for him.
In your case, I would put kitchen on the no-go-zone, and make sure he has some healthy snacks at bedside.
at night which helped a lot. This continuous eating will stop after a while as in the later stages Your Mom will not be able
to eat. Do not worry Infinity as this behaviour is normal for Alzheimer's Sufferers.
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