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Those little drinks for invalids

(41 Posts)
Whiff Mon 30-Dec-24 22:48:48

Last week of my mom's life she would only eat porridge for breakfast and dinner but I made it with full fat cream and dark brown sugar to get calories into her she only weight 6st. But she eat a bowl full. For lunch she only wanted chocolate and biscuits so that's what I gave her . Made sure she had plenty of cups of tea and water.

Have you asked to your friend if there is something she fancies to eat perhaps something she loved as a child . It doesn't matter if it's not healthy as long as she enjoys it.

travelsafar Mon 30-Dec-24 21:54:17

What about pots of ambrosia custard. Full of protein, smooth and tasty. Full fat yogurts are another option. 😊

Wheniwasyourage Mon 30-Dec-24 21:31:46

Granmarderby10

Ready made baby foods are by default bland, but there is nothing to say you couldn’t decant into a suitable dish and season with a little salt and pepper. Seasoning becomes more important when you are older for tempting the appetite.

Just what I was going to say. You can add sugar to sweet things as well. Anything goes if it will give her some enjoyment. If her taste has altered and you have to add what seems like too much salt to you, but she can enjoy the taste, even of a little bit, where's the harm?

JamesandJon33 Mon 30-Dec-24 17:25:20

My aunt loved those little pots of rice pudding, and jelly also.

loopyloo Mon 30-Dec-24 16:38:04

Some oromorph?

welbeck Mon 30-Dec-24 16:25:55

Greek yogurt
Or ice cream.
But maybe she doesn't want it.
There are special pastilles to such for sore mouths.
Can't remember the trade name now but chemist will know.
All the best.

Lathyrus3 Mon 30-Dec-24 13:46:25

It’s natural to want to feed those you care about.

But having nursed a few dying relatives I would say that there comes a time when eating is difficult. Taste changes, the swallowing reflex does not function well and the digestive systems shut down so that food can remain uncomfortably in the stomach or intestine.

Plenty of fluid - even sugar water with a little salt, which is basically hydration and sometimes a spoonful of something they really fancy. My mother asked for trifle on her last day and really enjoyed one little taste. Another relative wanted a Bovril -just an egg cup.

Making her comfortable is the most important thing.

teabagwoman Mon 30-Dec-24 13:13:04

You’re definitely not being selfish Exdancer, it’s a basic human instinct to want to feed people you care about. Have you asked your friend how she feels about eating and if there’s anything she fancies? It doesn’t matter if it’s not healthy, at this stage any calories will be ok. Is there a nurse visiting that you can talk to?

Granmarderby10 Mon 30-Dec-24 12:42:00

Ready made baby foods are by default bland, but there is nothing to say you couldn’t decant into a suitable dish and season with a little salt and pepper. Seasoning becomes more important when you are older for tempting the appetite.

Farzanah Mon 30-Dec-24 12:30:35

Perhaps just some sweet things or flavoured ice cubes to suck may help?

ExDancer Mon 30-Dec-24 12:27:17

We've done the home made soup thing, using every trick in the book to make it both tasty and easy to eat. Thanks for the recipes, but these aren't the issue.
Friends, myself included, call in most days and want to leave her husband easy meals for her.
I'm popping in tomorrow so I'll check and see whether she has any fruity drinks in her cupboard. I seem to think I've seen a lot of banana flavour which makes me think she especially doesn't like that flavour.
I take on board she may be ready to go and am now wondering if we're being selfish in keeping her alive.

Feelingmyage55 Mon 30-Dec-24 12:13:29

I would make chicken stock and reduce it then add a flavour she likes ie cream, puréed veg of choice. I suspect her sense of taste has been altered so quite a challenge. Sorbet? Not an acidic one. Creamy scrambled egg, porridge, mashed banana with soft brown sugar.

kittylester Mon 30-Dec-24 11:31:02

You can get those little bottles in fruit flavours. They helped me when I was very poorly.

tanith Mon 30-Dec-24 11:27:26

I hate to say this but your friend may well of decided enough is enough and this her way of telling you. If I’ve got it wrong I apologise. I tried to encourage my husband to eat in his last weeks until a very good friend said I think he’s decided it’s time and then I let him decide if he wanted something.
I’m sorry your friend is so ill.

Witzend Mon 30-Dec-24 11:02:16

Don’t know if this will help, but now and the. I indulge in the little Cow and Gate pots of puréed fruit for babies. Delicious!

I think I’d make some tasty lentil and vegetable soup, fairly thick (e.g. onions, carrots, swede, potatoes, celeriac) with plenty of seasoning via chicken/vegetable stock cubes, and then purée it in the blender.
If you make it thick enough you can thin it down a bit with milk, for extra protein.

ExDancer Mon 30-Dec-24 10:52:28

I have a friend who is dying.
She had no appetite and has lost so much weight she's bed ridden and weighs under 6stone. She has lost most of her teeth and her mouth is sore so she can't cope with her dentures.
She's been prescribed those little plastic pots of liquid supposedly containing all the ingredients she needs for a healthy diet, but she won't drink them because they taste horrible.
I've tasted them and she's right, they do taste horrible.
I bought some baby food, a kind of mush in tins, of things like vegetable casserole, and beef dinner - but they taste awful too - bland and nothing like 'normal' food.
Does anyone know if there are any tasty pots of invalid foods we can try?
(Obviously we have tried liquidising her usual meals.)