Loss of weight

Gary f

Registered User
Oct 6, 2021
19
0
My wife is hardly eating I’ve asked dr and dietitian for help , gave her some drink refuses them now , she’s down to 37kg , I wonder how much longer she will go on , she drinks but eating is a task
 

canary

Registered User
Feb 25, 2014
25,018
0
South coast
Hi @Gary f , you dont say what stage your wife is at, but Im guessing that her dementia is quite advanced now. It is very common in the later stage of dementia for the appetite to wane and weight to go down. It can be very hard finding something (anything!) that they will eat and if you find something that they will eat, hiding as many calories into it as possible.

Im afraid that there is just no knowing how long this will last - every person is different and it is often a roller coaster.
 

Yankeeabroad

Registered User
Oct 24, 2021
162
0
My wife is hardly eating I’ve asked dr and dietitian for help , gave her some drink refuses them now , she’s down to 37kg , I wonder how much longer she will go on , she drinks but eating is a task
Hi @Gary f . A doctor told me to cover things with sugar (even green beans!) if/when my mom slows down on eating as the disease advances. Apparently the sweet tastebuds are the last to go. We also hid lots of high calorie additions in the food (like melted cheese) and malted milk in ice cream shakes to add calories.

Additionally, my mom is a “social” eater and does better when people are eating and engaged in good conversation with and around her at mealtimes. We constantly have to remind the CH of this.

Before she advanced and was at home, she had lost a lot of weight and her appetite. The doctor perscribed megesterol, an appetite stimulant for a time, which also worked well. I’m not sure if this is allowed in the UK though (my parents are in the US.).
 

Duggies-girl

Registered User
Sep 6, 2017
3,620
0
@Gary f Double cream in everything worked for dad. Add it to milk shakes, scrambled eggs, soups and even on top of ice cream. Dad lost weight on two separate occasions over two years and each time the cream worked. from 8 stone back to 11 stone.

When dad had a third episode of weight loss I tried again but unfortunately dad was just too ill at that stage but it is always worth a try.
 

Gary f

Registered User
Oct 6, 2021
19
0
Hi @Gary f , you dont say what stage your wife is at, but Im guessing that her dementia is quite advanced now. It is very common in the later stage of dementia for the appetite to wane and weight to go down. It can be very hard finding something (anything!) that they will eat and if you find something that they will eat, hiding as many calories into it as possible.

Im afraid that there is just no knowing how long this will last - every person is different and it is often a roller coaster.
Thanks her dementia is getting worse have a few good days , yesterday hardly eat
 

Gary f

Registered User
Oct 6, 2021
19
0
@Gary f Double cream in everything worked for dad. Add it to milk shakes, scrambled eggs, soups and even on top of ice cream. Dad lost weight on two separate occasions over two years and each time the cream worked. from 8 stone back to 11 stone.

When dad had a third episode of weight loss I tried again but unfortunately dad was just too ill at that stage but it is always worth a try.
Thank you I try , but at moment it’s I’ve eaten don’t want anything else , but do add cream etc to food when she does eat
Many thanks
Gary
 

Gary f

Registered User
Oct 6, 2021
19
0
Hi @Gary f , you dont say what stage your wife is at, but Im guessing that her dementia is quite advanced now. It is very common in the later stage of dementia for the appetite to wane and weight to go down. It can be very hard finding something (anything!) that they will eat and if you find something that they will eat, hiding as many calories into it as possible.

Im afraid that there is just no knowing how long this will last - every person is different and it is often a roller coaster.
Thanks hopefully new meds might help I personally think it’s the patches she’s on