ABSTRACT
Little is known about how persons with dementia and their care partners respond to mealtime changes that occur throughout the dementia journey. By interviewing 27 persons living with dementia and their 28 care partners, we explored the meaning and experience of change surrounding mealtimes. Participants adjusted to mealtime change by adapting to an evolving life, as a result of a dynamic process of becoming aware of change, attaching meaning to change, and responding to change. Seminal events compounded by a sense of things being different triggered awareness of mealtime changes. Meaning was attached to mealtime changes, observed through emotions experienced and diverse strategies developed to support mealtime values. Responding to change ranged from resisting, to being in a holding pattern, to transforming and adapting. Understanding how individuals and families adjust to mealtime changes, and the strategies they develop, provides critical insights for supporting families throughout the dementia journey.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological , Alzheimer Disease/psychology , Awareness , Caregivers/psychology , Dementia/psychology , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Alzheimer Disease/physiopathology , Family , Female , Humans , Male , Middle AgedABSTRACT
Nutrition problems and specificly weight loss are common in older adults with dementia living in the community. Study 1 involved interviews with 14 formal providers to identify the range of nutrition concerns they had experienced. In study 2, 74 Canadian Alzheimer Society chapters were surveyed by e-mail (23% participation rate) to determine nutrition concerns and education resources provided to clients. In all, 26 of these nutrition pamphlets or handouts were rated on content and format by 2 independent researchers using a standardized rating system. Common nutrition concerns identified in older adults with dementia living in the community include safety, weight loss, forgetting or refusing to eat, appetite, dysphagia, and unfavorable eating behaviors. Most resources provided to clients were considered low quality and did not match the nutrition concerns expressed by formal providers. Currently, there is a considerable knowledge translation gap around nutrition and dementia, and this study provides a basis for the future development of nutrition education resources.
