Find Senior Care (City or Zip)
Join Now Log In
C
Cdante Asked August 2022

My Mom with moderate dementia has taken up ice cream, 2 scoops per hour, as her nightly TV companion. Is this a problem that needs fixing?

lealonnie1 Aug 2022
2 scoops of ice cream per hour is excessive for anyone to be eating and could make your mother sick. While I am an advocate of allowing an elder with dementia to eat whatever they want, eating to THIS level of excess can cause illness like diarrhea and vomiting, etc. I'd limit her intake of ice cream for that reason, diabetes or not. She can raise her blood sugar to 500 or more if she eats enough, and then the trip to the ER is YOUR problem. And that defeats the whole purpose of allowing her to eat whatever she wants............it's causing more grief than it's curing. Allow her to eat 2 scoops of ice cream each night, and then offer her popcorn or some other snack that isn't as rich or sweet as ice cream, that's my suggestion.

Good luck.

Grandma1954 Aug 2022
Is it a problem for you?
You might be able to control some of it. There are the little cups of ice cream that would be better for portion control. (but probably a bit more expensive than a large container)
I freeze serving containers of yogurt, I get the ice cream feel and taste but fewer calories than ice cream. And a wider variety of flavors.

I do have questions though....
2 scoops per hour. How many scoops is she going through.
2 scoops per hour and if she watches TV for 2 hours that is 4 scoops, not bad., But if she is watching for 3 or 4 hours 6 to 8 scoops might be a lot.
Is she eating balanced regular meals during the day breakfast, lunch and dinner?

ADVERTISEMENT


ConnieCaretaker Aug 2022
Geriatric Psychiatrist needs to evaluate this as an eating disorder? After there's clarity on that issue, perhaps a nutritionist can assist.

PeggySue2020 Aug 2022
If she’s diabetic, get her low sugar ice cream. If she’s eating that much ice cream limit her dinner.

JoAnn29 Aug 2022
If she is a diabetic, yes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Ask a Question

Subscribe to
Our Newsletter