Stocking Up And Storing Food
A person with dementia might need help keeping track of what food they have at home and storing food safely. You could try:
- storing food in ways that are easy to access and eat, such as pouring cereals into clear pots or cutting cheese into cubes
- buying frozen ready meals but be mindful that the person might need help reheating frozen foods safely. You could put labels with clear cooking instructions on the top of the meal. You could put notes reminding the person that the meals are in the freezer on the freezer door
- buying ambient temperature ready meals is another option, as these do not need to be stored in the fridge or freezer, so may be more accessible for some people
- checking the persons cupboards and disposing of anything out of date
How Can You Help Someone With Chewing Or Swallowing Difficulties
Avoid giving your loved one certain foods they find difficult to chew or swallow. It is important to ensure that their oral hygiene is good because pain in their mouth can make chewing difficult.
Soft, moist food is easier to manage, especially if your loved one tires easily. If your relative wears dentures, ensure that they fit correctly and are comfortable. If not, their dentist should be able to help.
Referring a person who has problems with swallowing to a speech and language therapist may help. If your elderly relative holds food in their mouth, chews continuously or leaves hard to chew food on the plate, ask their doctor for a referral.
If your elderly relative is drowsy or does not sit up properly, they may have difficulty in swallowing safely. It is important, particularly in the later stages of dementia care, to ensure that the person is sitting upright, and is comfortable and alert before offering them anything to eat or drink. If they are in bed, they need to be well supported and positioned correctly.
A physiotherapist will be able to advise you on how best to position your loved one for eating and drinking, and an occupational therapist may be able to suggest suitable aids to help them eat and drink. Their GP will refer them to a physiotherapist or occupational therapist if appropriate.
Why Do Dementia Patients Stop Eating
There are multiple reasons why do dementia patients stop eating and it is important to understand why they may start to avoid food.
Dementia patients might refuse to eat if they either dislike the food or are trying to tell you their meal is too hot or too cold.
They may not even know that they should chew and swallow it.
Patients diagnosed with dementia will experience a as well as problem-solving and other thinking-related skills.
Alzheimers disease is the most common type of dementia and as many as 50 percent of these individuals find it difficult to eat at some point during their disease .
It becomes increasingly difficult for affected patients to perform normal daily activities. For this and other reasons, patients with dementia will spit out their food or stop eating entirely.
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End Of Life Dementia Care And Covid
Older adults and people with serious underlying medical conditions are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19. Older adults also have the highest rates of dementia. Given the risks that older adults face from both COVID-19 and dementia, its important to understand how to protect yourself and your loved one. Find more information about dementia and COVID-19 from the CDC.
When a dementia like Alzheimers disease is first diagnosed, if everyone understands that there is no cure, then plans for the end of life can be made before thinking and speaking abilities fail and the person with Alzheimers can no longer legally complete documents like advance directives.
End-of-life care decisions are more complicated for caregivers if the dying person has not expressed the kind of care he or she would prefer. Someone newly diagnosed with Alzheimers disease might not be able to imagine the later stages of the disease.
Encouraging A Person With Dementia To Drink
A person with dementia may not always be able to recognise when they are thirsty, or they might not be able to communicate their thirst. But nevertheless, it is recommended to aim for about eight to ten glasses or mugs of fluid per day. You could try:
- having a drink beside the person at all times
- adding a little flavoured squash if the person is not keen on water
- offering a choice of hot and cold drinks
- helping the person if they are struggling to pick up or hold a cup
- offering the person different shapes and sizes of cup
- finding out if they have a favourite mug they like to drink from
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Dying From Dementia With Late
The death of your loved one can be a hard concept to wrap your head around and accept. But knowing what to expect can help you when your loved one has late-stage dementia. It might help to know what will happen in the future so that you can be prepared emotionally and logistically.
This article discusses how dementia progresses and what to expect during late-stage dementia.
Not Starting Or Stopping Treatment
For some terminally ill people, aggressive medical treatment may not be helpful and may prolong the dying process without improving quality of life. Under certain circumstances, treatments can increase suffering, ruin the remaining quality of life, or even shorten life.
Stopping treatment can result in a peaceful death but it may also result in increased discomfort. Consult with your physician and arrange for optimal palliative care before stopping treatment.
Stopping treatment can be combined with hospice and palliative care or voluntary stopping eating and drinking to shorten the dying process and reduce suffering.
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Caring For Someone With Dementia Towards The End Of Life
Please be aware – this information is for healthcare professionals. We also have information for the public.
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People with dementia may experience problems with thinking, memory, behaviour and mobility. It can be difficult to recognise when someone with dementia is nearing the end of their life. You can support the person by communicating with them and helping them with any symptoms they have. If possible, its a good idea to plan the persons care in advance to help understand what they want from their care.
On this page:
Becoming Sleepy And Other Changes That May Occur
A person close to death will become increasingly sleepy. Most people will slip into unconsciousness and die peacefully and quietly in their sleep. Occasionally some people may become more agitated as death approaches. If this is the case, healthcare professionals will talk to you and, having ensured pain and other symptoms are controlled with appropriate medication, will administer some sedation. This may be given at first by an injection and at regular intervals if required, depending upon how the person responds to it.
The persons skin can become pale and moist and slightly cool prior to death. You may also see changes in the colour of peoples hands, finger nails, feet, toes and toe nails, as the body becomes less able to circulate blood.
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Summary Of This Article
- Near the end of life, minimal amounts of food and drink might be needed, if at all.
- Studies have shown that artificial nutrition has very little impact on survival for hospice patients.
- Family members and caregivers can show their support in ways other than meals.
Few things are harder than watching a loved one slip away because of a life-limiting illness. The experience is even more challenging when family members and caregivers notice that their hospice patient stops eating and drinking at the end of life.
A dying patients needs for food and water are far different from those of a healthy, active person.
Families may worry:
- Are we giving up on our loved one if we dont try to feed them or offer water/fluids?
- What is our loved ones chance of survival without water or food in hospice care? How long can a hospice patient live without food and water?
- Our family traditions revolve around food and drink as symbols of loving care. Are we taking away the love if we take away nutrition and hydration? Are we letting our loved one starve to death?
- Will withholding food and water at the end of life cause pain for our loved one?
- What can we do to make sure our loved one does not suffer?
Arrange The Food On The Plate
You may need to experiment with different sizes, textures and flavours of food to see which the person responds to the best. Here are some tips to help you change things up:
- Add variety in the colour of food different colour vegetables help to really brighten up the plate.
- Try less quantities of food and fewer individual items on the plate.
- Think about what types of food they have always enjoyed in the past. Put it on the plate with another food right next to it.
- Cut up the food into small pieces.
- Change the texture of the food potatoes could be mashed, boiled, baked for example.
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What Do Elderly People Think About Life And Death
As we get older, death seems to be nearer than when we are younger. In as much as anyone can die regardless of age, for an older person, it seems like it is more likely to happen, especially when dealing with different health conditions that the body does not handle as it used to in the younger years.
For older persons, death does not always spell sorrow and terror, as is the case with younger people. Many of the older people are contented with what the short-term future has for them. You may think that people may get anxious as they become older, but this is not the case. Older people do not have much sadness and anxiety, especially related to death. They are actually more positive about life and death.
As we grow older, our perspective shifts. This is when you realize that things are not as they always seem. Most people fear death because they feel that they will lose the things that they have been working so hard to get over the years. However, for older people, this attachment to things acquired is not really pronounced. This is how some of the fear of death actually melts away.
When you look around you and you realize that there are things that are a part of you that will outlive you actually help in a major way. This could be the legacy we have in children or gardens planted. There are yet others who place value on their country, their religion, or families that live on even after they are gone.
What Happens In The Last Stage Of Dementia
A patient could spend between approximately one and three years in the last severe stage of Alzheimers. Approximately 1.8 million US adults are in the final stages of dementia at the time of writing.
As the disease progresses, a patient can do less. They become increasingly dependent on others for assistance.
Eating and swallowing become more difficult during this stage. Sometimes patients wont eat because they arent hungry or theyre simply confused.
Around the clock hospice care is usually administered to such patients.
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How Family Members And Caregivers Can Help
A key factor that should guide decisions about nutrition and hydration at the end of life is patient choice. Patients who prefer quality of life at the end of life often want to be unencumbered by tubes and equipment in their final hours, allowing them to be physically close to their family members and able to receive the comfort care they desire.
Family members and caregivers play an important role by supporting a loved one through the dying process:
- If the patient can still eat or drink, offer small sips of water/liquids, ice chips, hard candy or very small amounts of food via spoon. Take cues from the patient when to stop.
- If the patient can no longer drink, keep the lips and mouth moist with swabs, a wet wash cloth, lip balm or moisturizers.
- If the patient can no longer eat or refuses to eat, provide alternative forms of nourishment: conversation, loving touch, music, singing, poetry, humor, pet visits, gentle massage, reading, prayers or other acts of caring and love.
What Are The Signs Of End
It is important for caregivers to know when an individual with dementia is close to the end of their life, because it helps ensure they receive the right amount of care at the right time. It can be difficult to know exactly when this time is due to the variable nature of dementias progression, but understanding common end-of-life symptoms of seniors with dementia can help. Below is a timeline of signs of dying in elderly people with dementia:
Final Six Months
- A diagnosis of another condition such as cancer, congestive heart failure or COPD
- An increase in hospital visits or admissions
Final Two-to-Three Months
- Speech limited to six words or less per day
- Difficulty in swallowing or choking on liquids or food
- Unable to walk or sit upright without assistance
- Incontinence
- Hands, feet, arms and legs may be increasingly cold to the touch
- Inability to swallow
- Terminal agitation or restlessness
- An increasing amount of time asleep or drifting into unconsciousness
- Changes in breathing, including shallow breaths or periods without breathing for several seconds or up to a minute
Patients with dementia are eligible to receive hospice care if they have a diagnosis of six months or less to live if the disease progresses in a typical fashion. Once a patient begins experiencing any of the above symptoms, it is time to speak with a hospice professional about how they can help provide added care and support.
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How Dementia Causes Death
A person in the late stage of dementia is at risk for many medical complications, like a urinary tract infection and pneumonia . They’re at an even higher risk of certain conditions because they’re unable to move.
Trouble swallowing, eating, and drinking leads to weight loss, dehydration, and malnutrition. This further increases their risk of infection.
In the end, most people with late-stage dementia die of a medical complication related to their underlying dementia.
For example, a person may die from an infection like aspiration pneumonia. This type of pneumonia usually happens because of swallowing problems.
A person may also die from a blood clot in the lung because they are bedbound and not mobile.
It’s important to know that late-stage dementia is a terminal illness. This means that dementia itself can lead to death. Sometimes this is appropriately listed as the cause of death on a death certificate.
Eating And Weight Loss In The Later Stages Of Dementia
Eating and drinking becomes more difficult as dementia progresses. People in the later stages of dementia may experience loss of appetite among other symptoms.
The later stages of dementia
Many people with dementia lose weight in the later stages. Weight loss can affect the immune system and make it harder for the person to fight infections and other illnesses. It can also increase the risk of falling and make it harder for the person to remain independent.
People in the later stages of dementia may also develop difficulties with swallowing and chewing. People with swallowing problems are at risk of choking and of food or saliva going down the windpipe, causing an infection. Swallowing difficulties can be common in the later stages as the persons muscles and reflexes no longer work properly. They can be distressing for the person and those supporting them.
If the person is having difficulties its important to speak to the GP they may refer the person to a speech and language therapist or nutritional specialist.
Eating and drinking
The person should be supported to eat and drink for as long as they show an interest and can do so safely . There are ways to help make this easier for the person. For example:
Eating and drinking can still bring the person pleasure, even in the later stages. Its important to support them to eat and drink things that they enjoy. Many peoples tastes will change as they get older and as dementia progresses .
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What Causes A Dementia Patient To Stop Eating 4 Factors To Consider
The global statistics for dementia are mind-boggling. As of 2017, the total number of people with dementia was estimated to be 50 million.
This number is expected to rise to 75 million by 2030. Furthermore, in the US alone, one in three elderly people dies from Alzheimers or another form of dementia.
These increasing numbers of cases bring with them increasing challenges.
Feeding such patients is indeed one of the biggest challenges.
Poor nutrition increases the risk of dehydration, muscle loss, higher chances of infection, a decline in the overall well-being, and even death .
In the seven stages of Alzheimers a patient moves from their dementia being barely detectable to an extremely severe, steady, and visible decline .
Its not abnormal for Alzheimers patients to stop eating or drinking in the later stages of their diagnosis.
Approximately 50 percent of diagnosed Alzheimers patients wont eat enough food or drink sufficient fluids . The resulting weight loss develops into a larger problem as their disease progresses.
As per research, following are the four main reasons dementia patients stop eating and drinking as their disease progresses.