Are you sure you want to exit? Your progress will be lost.
Who are you caring for?
Which best describes their mobility?
How well are they maintaining their hygiene?
How are they managing their medications?
Does their living environment pose any safety concerns?
Fall risks, spoiled food, or other threats to wellbeing
Are they experiencing any memory loss?
Which best describes your loved one's social life?
Acknowledgment of Disclosures and Authorization
By proceeding, I agree that I understand the following disclosures:
I. How We Work in Washington. Based on your preferences, we provide you with information about one or more of our contracted senior living providers ("Participating Communities") and provide your Senior Living Care Information to Participating Communities. The Participating Communities may contact you directly regarding their services. APFM does not endorse or recommend any provider. It is your sole responsibility to select the appropriate care for yourself or your loved one. We work with both you and the Participating Communities in your search. We do not permit our Advisors to have an ownership interest in Participating Communities.
II. How We Are Paid. We do not charge you any fee – we are paid by the Participating Communities. Some Participating Communities pay us a percentage of the first month's standard rate for the rent and care services you select. We invoice these fees after the senior moves in.
III. When We Tour. APFM tours certain Participating Communities in Washington (typically more in metropolitan areas than in rural areas.) During the 12 month period prior to December 31, 2017, we toured 86.2% of Participating Communities with capacity for 20 or more residents.
IV. No Obligation or Commitment. You have no obligation to use or to continue to use our services. Because you pay no fee to us, you will never need to ask for a refund.
V. Complaints. Please contact our Family Feedback Line at (866) 584-7340 or ConsumerFeedback@aplaceformom.com to report any complaint. Consumers have many avenues to address a dispute with any referral service company, including the right to file a complaint with the Attorney General's office at: Consumer Protection Division, 800 5th Avenue, Ste. 2000, Seattle, 98104 or 800-551-4636.
VI. No Waiver of Your Rights. APFM does not (and may not) require or even ask consumers seeking senior housing or care services in Washington State to sign waivers of liability for losses of personal property or injury or to sign waivers of any rights established under law.I agree that: A.I authorize A Place For Mom ("APFM") to collect certain personal and contact detail information, as well as relevant health care information about me or from me about the senior family member or relative I am assisting ("Senior Living Care Information"). B.APFM may provide information to me electronically. My electronic signature on agreements and documents has the same effect as if I signed them in ink. C.APFM may send all communications to me electronically via e-mail or by access to an APFM web site. D.If I want a paper copy, I can print a copy of the Disclosures or download the Disclosures for my records. E.This E-Sign Acknowledgement and Authorization applies to these Disclosures and all future Disclosures related to APFM's services, unless I revoke my authorization. You may revoke this authorization in writing at any time (except where we have already disclosed information before receiving your revocation.) This authorization will expire after one year. F.You consent to APFM's reaching out to you using a phone system than can auto-dial numbers (we miss rotary phones, too!), but this consent is not required to use our service.
✔
I acknowledge and authorize
✔
I consent to the collection of my consumer health data.*
✔
I consent to the sharing of my consumer health data with qualified home care agencies.*
*If I am consenting on behalf of someone else, I have the proper authorization to do so. By clicking Get My Results, you agree to our Privacy Policy. You also consent to receive calls and texts, which may be autodialed, from us and our customer communities. Your consent is not a condition to using our service. Please visit our Terms of Use. for information about our privacy practices.
Mostly Independent
Your loved one may not require home care or assisted living services at this time. However, continue to monitor their condition for changes and consider occasional in-home care services for help as needed.
Remember, this assessment is not a substitute for professional advice.
Share a few details and we will match you to trusted home care in your area:
Tksquest, welcome to the forum, this is a common question. Please note that when we age we tend to lose our sense of taste except for sweet tasting items. I know it is slowly happening to myself. Stuff I liked years ago have no appeal to me now.
What does Dad like to eat? If it is only one or two types of meal, then go with those meals. Chances are with Alzheimer's he won't remember having the same meal the day before.
My parents [in their 90's] always had muffins, ice cream, pies, cakes, soft cookies, and a lot of TV type dinners. Nothing wrong with having ice cream for breakfast [unless your Dad is on a medical diet].
I always tell people that it is quite amazing how little it takes to sustain life ongoing for an elder who wishes not to eat. This is most in evidence when one cannot any longer swallow and a decisions is made for Hospice and end of life care. They often go on with tiny amounts of food and fluid for months. That said, you should consult with his MD. In the end stages, especially with dementia involved, elders often not only lose all drive to eat, but lose a lot of swallow reflex, resulting in choking and food sucked into the lung, causing aspiration pneumonia. A swallow eval can be arranged with OT or radiology to see if there is a good swallow reflex. If not nutrition suggestions will be made in consult with a nutritionist.
No offense to Meals on Wheels but I tasted one delivered to my MIL and it was not very appealing in either texture or flavor. Maybe this is one of the problems. Taste one of the meals for yourself to judge.
Give him what he wants and likes to eat, regardless of what it is. Even if it's chocolate ice-cream for breakfast. And try incorporating some of the Ensure drinks in his flavor of choice. Now this is of course if he doesn't have a swallowing issue which could be a reason that he's not wanting to eat, so have that checked first, then just give him whatever he says he wants. One of the ladies in my caregiver support groups mother who lived to be 102, lived on ice-cream and cashews for the last 5 years of her life. That sounds pretty good to me, and if I live to be that age, I wouldn't mind that as my diet either.
One early sign of Dementia is the loss of taste and smell. You need smell to taste. Its smell that gets the saliva glands working. So food for Dad may not be appealing. With Meals on wheels I would say there is no salt or spices because of dietary needs of other clients. I worked for a VNA and a client was always throwing her MOWs lunch in the trash. One Nurse told her to stop the delivery if she wasn't going to eat it. There are only so many people MOWs can service because of volunteers. Some else could be helped.
Our Society seems to feel we need 3 meals a day. We don't. I eat very light for breakfast. Could be a bagel, cereal, oatmeal a cinnamon bun. I snack in the afternoon. Then dinner and I eat nothing after dinner and I am 73. What those with Dementia can taste is sugar. Thats why they go for the sweets. So maybe toast with cinnamon sugar. Oatmeal with sugar. Some salt and spices. Unless a diabetic, having a balanced diet doesn't matter at this point.
My daughter was an RN in NHs and says she has seen little old ladies live on 3 insures a day. I had to eat insure for a couple of days. If you put them in the freezer for an hour or two, they thicken up and taste like a milkshake. Good. Choc anyway.
We give my Dad (he's going to be 95 in April) a high-quality weight-gainer protein shake - banana is his favorite. And he usually has a good bowl of oatmeal for breakfast and some type of fruit and a banana shake if he doesn't want to eat dinner. He can be very stubborn. Works out well. And I don't have to force him to drink the shake - he loves it! Win Win! He also snacks throughout the day on whatever he feels like - even candy!
By proceeding, I agree that I understand the following disclosures:
I. How We Work in Washington.
Based on your preferences, we provide you with information about one or more of our contracted senior living providers ("Participating Communities") and provide your Senior Living Care Information to Participating Communities. The Participating Communities may contact you directly regarding their services.
APFM does not endorse or recommend any provider. It is your sole responsibility to select the appropriate care for yourself or your loved one. We work with both you and the Participating Communities in your search. We do not permit our Advisors to have an ownership interest in Participating Communities.
II. How We Are Paid.
We do not charge you any fee – we are paid by the Participating Communities. Some Participating Communities pay us a percentage of the first month's standard rate for the rent and care services you select. We invoice these fees after the senior moves in.
III. When We Tour.
APFM tours certain Participating Communities in Washington (typically more in metropolitan areas than in rural areas.) During the 12 month period prior to December 31, 2017, we toured 86.2% of Participating Communities with capacity for 20 or more residents.
IV. No Obligation or Commitment.
You have no obligation to use or to continue to use our services. Because you pay no fee to us, you will never need to ask for a refund.
V. Complaints.
Please contact our Family Feedback Line at (866) 584-7340 or ConsumerFeedback@aplaceformom.com to report any complaint. Consumers have many avenues to address a dispute with any referral service company, including the right to file a complaint with the Attorney General's office at: Consumer Protection Division, 800 5th Avenue, Ste. 2000, Seattle, 98104 or 800-551-4636.
VI. No Waiver of Your Rights.
APFM does not (and may not) require or even ask consumers seeking senior housing or care services in Washington State to sign waivers of liability for losses of personal property or injury or to sign waivers of any rights established under law.
I agree that:
A.
I authorize A Place For Mom ("APFM") to collect certain personal and contact detail information, as well as relevant health care information about me or from me about the senior family member or relative I am assisting ("Senior Living Care Information").
B.
APFM may provide information to me electronically. My electronic signature on agreements and documents has the same effect as if I signed them in ink.
C.
APFM may send all communications to me electronically via e-mail or by access to an APFM web site.
D.
If I want a paper copy, I can print a copy of the Disclosures or download the Disclosures for my records.
E.
This E-Sign Acknowledgement and Authorization applies to these Disclosures and all future Disclosures related to APFM's services, unless I revoke my authorization. You may revoke this authorization in writing at any time (except where we have already disclosed information before receiving your revocation.) This authorization will expire after one year.
F.
You consent to APFM's reaching out to you using a phone system than can auto-dial numbers (we miss rotary phones, too!), but this consent is not required to use our service.
What does Dad like to eat? If it is only one or two types of meal, then go with those meals. Chances are with Alzheimer's he won't remember having the same meal the day before.
My parents [in their 90's] always had muffins, ice cream, pies, cakes, soft cookies, and a lot of TV type dinners. Nothing wrong with having ice cream for breakfast [unless your Dad is on a medical diet].
And try incorporating some of the Ensure drinks in his flavor of choice.
Now this is of course if he doesn't have a swallowing issue which could be a reason that he's not wanting to eat, so have that checked first, then just give him whatever he says he wants.
One of the ladies in my caregiver support groups mother who lived to be 102, lived on ice-cream and cashews for the last 5 years of her life.
That sounds pretty good to me, and if I live to be that age, I wouldn't mind that as my diet either.
Our Society seems to feel we need 3 meals a day. We don't. I eat very light for breakfast. Could be a bagel, cereal, oatmeal a cinnamon bun. I snack in the afternoon. Then dinner and I eat nothing after dinner and I am 73. What those with Dementia can taste is sugar. Thats why they go for the sweets. So maybe toast with cinnamon sugar. Oatmeal with sugar. Some salt and spices. Unless a diabetic, having a balanced diet doesn't matter at this point.
My daughter was an RN in NHs and says she has seen little old ladies live on 3 insures a day. I had to eat insure for a couple of days. If you put them in the freezer for an hour or two, they thicken up and taste like a milkshake. Good. Choc anyway.