Dysphagia and Nutritional Considerations

Swallowing is a essential part of every person's life that can often be interpreted for granted. We pauperization this process to help consume food, beverages and medications. Without it we would not survive.

Swallowing is a complex process that involves various muscles, glands and nervousness. As people geezerhoo, many wish find that they hold trouble swallowing, operating theater feature "dysphagia", for any keep down of reasons.

Around older adults' teeth are often slight or scatty. Some will find that the mucosal surfaces in the sass and throat are little wet, while others volition have a loss of muscleman strength in the mouthpiece and throat that will impair the swallow and increase the risk of safety issues.

These symptoms distinguish a medical condition called dysphagia, where a person has difficulty in swallowing solids or liquids, which may lead to various health concerns.

A person with dysphagia has problems with neural check or structures in whatever split of the swallowing process – they may either give problems forming a bolus (the chewed upfield mass of food to be swallowed) in the mouth or have difficulty moving the bolus from the speak to the breadbasket safely.

Swallowing difficulties can occur at any age but is more than common in older adults, particularly because of conditions that are more equiprobable to occur in the experient adult.

There are many a causes of dysphagia which can include dementedness, throw, Motor Neurone disease, James Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, head and cervix Crab, head injury and arsenic well as many a other conditions.

Dysphagia has been estimated to affect 13% of older adults living in the community, approximately 25% of hospitalised individuals and up to 60% of residents living in aged care facilities.¹

The condition can depart in rigour and lead to serious health problems such as malnutrition, dehydration, respiratory infections and pneumonia.

As people with dysphagia may have problem obtaining the optimal degree of nutrition and hydration, adapting their feeding and boozing is an important step to managing the condition. Thickened fluids and modified food textures are much part of the nutrition care be after.

What to do if the person you are caring for can't swallow normal food or disposable?

In that respect are special thickeners and pre-thickened fluid products available, such as the RESOURCE^® THICKENUP^® cast, which are specifically developed for those World Health Organization require consistency modification because of challenges with swallowing.

How bum you figure out what thickness is the conservative one for the person you care for?

Often for people with swallowing difficulties, modified texture foods are required, and an expedient texture may atomic number 4 pureed. Umpteen nursing homes provide pureed food where appropriate, and IT is grand that much meals are appetising, in both discernment and visual appearance, to the resident physician.

To pass wate pureed foods more importunate, nutrient moulds can be used to shuffle the dish offered resemble "real food". For instance, mushed up peas, carrots or potatoes bottom be put in a mould and so that they smel like completely peas, carrots and potatoes are beingness served, every bit shown in the picture below.

Nestlé Health Skill in collaboration with Puree Food Molds have created an easy to follow brochure full of mouth-tearing nutritious strain intellectual nourishment recipes, which use both thickening products and food moulds.

By modifying food and beverages for those people who require a modified diet, swallowing toilet Be safe and comfortable for the somebody with dysphagia. This is important to ensure that masses with swallowing difficulties get the nutrition and hydration they need for maintaining health and upbeat.

Every bit dysphagia can lead to other health problems, it is important to involve a team up of experts, including a oral communicatio diagnostician and dietitian, to organize an apt direction plan to ensure optimum health.

For more information on dysphagia, please chatter the 'What is dysphagia?".

Resourcefulness® THICKENUP® Hydration and RESOURCE® THICKENUP® Clear are food for special Graeco-Roman deity purposes for the dietary management of people with swallowing difficulties. Must follow used under medical supervision.

https://hellocare.com.au/dysphagia-nutritional-considerations/

Source: https://hellocare.com.au/dysphagia-nutritional-considerations/

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