Not eating and drinking

[Mollymoons]

Hi - I need some advice please.

Dad was diagnosed nearly 4 years ago with Alzheimer's and his deterioration has been steady. During the last year his appetite had reduced however in the last few weeks he has started to refuse food. He normally eats a small breakfast then nothing more all day until the evening meal but then will only eat a small portion of the meal. Over the last week or so he has eaten maybe a mouthful then says he doesn't want it (or anything else we try to tempt him with). He has also stopped drinking fluids despite providing him with regular drinks and reminding him he needs to take a drink. He gets agitated when you ask him to eat and drink and ends up point blank refusing anything. He is getting more stubborn with this.

I took him to the GP and his advice was to give him calorie-filled juice drinks but that is not as easy as it sounds when he refuses anything most days. I am worried about the consequences of not drinking and eating on his body. I wouldn't say he has reached an advanced stage as he can still communicate but daily tasks such as dressing are now becoming problematic.

Has anyone else experienced this reluctance to eat and drink before the advanced stages?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Rheme]

Go back to your dad's GP and insist on a referral to a dietician. They can prescribe fortified drinks/yoghurts which are meal supplements and will help guard against weight loss and provide essential nutrician and am sure will provide advice regarding fluid intake.

 

[jorgieporgie]

Hi - I need some advice please.

Dad was diagnosed nearly 4 years ago with Alzheimer's and his deterioration has been steady. During the last year his appetite had reduced however in the last few weeks he has started to refuse food. He normally eats a small breakfast then nothing more all day until the evening meal but then will only eat a small portion of the meal. Over the last week or so he has eaten maybe a mouthful then says he doesn't want it (or anything else we try to tempt him with). He has also stopped drinking fluids despite providing him with regular drinks and reminding him he needs to take a drink. He gets agitated when you ask him to eat and drink and ends up point blank refusing anything. He is getting more stubborn with this.

I took him to the GP and his advice was to give him calorie-filled juice drinks but that is not as easy as it sounds when he refuses anything most days. I am worried about the consequences of not drinking and eating on his body. I wouldn't say he has reached an advanced stage as he can still communicate but daily tasks such as dressing are now becoming problematic.

Has anyone else experienced this reluctance to eat and drink before the advanced stages?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

Mollymoons,
My Mum as done exactly the same, only eating spoonful of soft food no solids. GP prescribed fortified drinks and referred her to a dietician.
I would get GP in because if your Dad is not drinking as well then he will dehydrate also stop going to loo which can be quiet serious.
He may need to go on a drip for a couple of days to hydrate him.
Please get advise soon.
Keep posting and let us know how you get on. Big Hugs x

 

[Mollymoons]

Thank you Rheme and Jorgieporgie for the advice. I will take him back to the GP as I feel they could do more but need a bit of a push to do so.

I will post how I get on.

Thanks again - it's hard when you have no experience of caring for an Alzheimer's patient - Mum is in denial about how he is deteriorating so I feel I am battling alone.

Mollymoons

 

[ferniegirl]

Hi, my mum stopped eating and drinking and was put on the anti-depressant Mirtazapine which has the well-known side-effect of weight-gain. Within weeks she was eating and drinking again! Good luck.

 

[Mollymoons]

Thanks Ferniegirl for the advice. Dad is on Sertraline for his moods but I will ask the GP about the Mirtazapine if it helps him eat and drink.

 

[Red66]

Thanks Ferniegirl for the advice. Dad is on Sertraline for his moods but I will ask the GP about the Mirtazapine if it helps him eat and drink.

Yes I can confirm, dad was given mirtazapine at night and he did eat more for a while.

 

[Netty1]

Hi all, I haven't been on here for a while , mum had a chest infection twice and in the last 6 weeks , and her appetite wasn't so good , then a week ago she fell outside near the car. Her head bleeding and saying her back was hurting , I phoned 999 . She was brought inside the house and was checked over by the paramedic . Soft tissue in her back was the problem and she had a lot of pain . Since the fall ,she is hardly eating anything , one spoon of soup ,one bite of a piece of bread , one cracker , tonight 3 chips ! I have had the doctor out to review her two days ago and she has prescribed protein shakes , but even that is difficult because she won't drink much either ! I don't know what else to do !! I've tried everything . What do I do when she becomes too weak to walk ?


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[Twinkletoes25]

Hi! We have a similar problem! Mum was kept in hospital as a result of a fall. She broke her wrist which means she cannot push herself out of a chair to walk. Whilst in hospital she has barely eaten anything and refuses to cooperate with the nursing staff in any way whatsoever!! It been nearly three weeks and even though she's been transferred for rehabilitation to a hospital nearer to home, she still refuses to eat more than a mouthful. It's creating a downwards spiral towards self destruction. At loss to know what to do. Any suggestions?