From Frail to Hale and Hearty

Bviously he is very concerned about your lost weight and is just concentrating on getting the calories in.

Without a necessary amount of daily calories your body will use up its fat reserves and start devouring your internal organs. I guess you must be very close to this threshold if he is so concerned.

You need to eat more calorific food.

What about some of these high protein drinks, like Huey. or even the old standby, Complan, as supplements to your diet? DH had to be on a liquid diet recently and used these. He also found the high protein instant soups called Fuel very palatable.

I am eating but probably 2/3rds of what I used to eat. I had a mild dose of Covid back in August and didn't eat for 3 days which is what started all this.

I was not overweight to start with. Always been one of these people who can eat what they like.

It is the lack of interest which is the problem. Better when OH cooks but he is a bit limited.

Not arguing with you Nandalot, but I believe that high protein can actually be harmful when a patient has reached this stage in her=nutrition because the kidneys and other organs don’t have the resources to deal with it,

Calories, especially essential fats first and carbohydrates come first.

I would hate to be on such a diet……why promote the consumption of such processed foods? Surely there’s better ways of putting weight on?

Dairy ice cream, made with cream not vegetable fats, slithers down and is calorie packed.

But you have the diet sheet. Try to find some things that you like.

I ve looked up the Frail to Hale and Hearty diet sheet Tuzliz.

There’s a whole range of foods there they they suggest.

It by no means suggests only scotch eggs and pork pies, it’s got lots of suggestions for other tasty ways of putting on some weight.

Are you sure you’re not dismissing it for other reasons!

My dad had Parkinsons.
As far as I can remember he didnt have a diet sheet.
Though he was probably normal weight, or a little over.

I googled Parkinson diet sheet and all sorts of things came up.
Including advice from the Parkinsons website.

But I am guessing, that your GP gave you that particular sheet for a particular reason.

Maybe next time you are in there, you can query things with him?

A bit of a cross post with lathyrus3.

I can understand you looking at that diet sheet in horror but it does sound as though you need to eat a high calorie diet pretty urgently. In my experience frequent, small meals work best. Could you make a start by focusing on full fat milk, yogurt, cream and cheese. You could also try adding extra milk powder into soups, milk puddings etc. it is difficult when you don’t feel like eating but many people find that their appetite improves once they manage to get their calorie intake up. Don’t worry about fruit and veg for a bit, your body will cope.

I'd have thought fresh green veg could have been cooked - and then served with generous dollop of butter or healthy type mayonnaise.

Then fruit as maybe a crumble (sweetened with real honey) and generous helping of cream with it.

Most of us have to watch it re the amount of butter and cream we have - but if the whole idea is to pack in extra calories....then that could be a way?

Is nut butter possible? - calorific and healthy. Is making a dressing for something (eg vegetables) with tahini possible?
Are things like cocoa made with full-fat milk, sweetened with real honey possible?

Is hummus possible - I should imagine those readymade ones are pretty calorific and that could be dolloped on all sorts of savoury stuff?

Lathyrus3

I ve looked up the Frail to Hale and Hearty diet sheet Tuzliz.

There’s a whole range of foods there they they suggest.

It by no means suggests only scotch eggs and pork pies, it’s got lots of suggestions for other tasty ways of putting on some weight.

Are you sure you’re not dismissing it for other reasons!

I know it is lack of interest and I am trying. I think the sheet if for people who don't cook but I have always cooked. Working up the enthusiasm is difficult. I only got it on Tuesday so am working my way through. I don't like being nagged though and OH nags - I know it is only concern.

If I snack during the day I can't eat main meals - catch 22

I am just trying to get my thoughts into order. It is a big enough shock to have Parkinson's confirmed.

I am constantly amazed at the ignorance of medical authorities of the psychology as well as basic facts of nutrition. If someone has lost interest in food, all the things that diet sheets suggested you eat are just the things to kill your appetite.

If someone is not eating enough and is losing weight they need to be tempted to eat. Be offered small portions of food nicely presented.

What you need to do is look at the foods you normally eat and see how they can have their calory count increased. For example, if you are having boiled potatoes with a meal, make sure you put plenty of butter on them. If you have a salad, have mayonnais not salad cream.

Make sure that you do not make portions too big, I know that sounds odd, but a huge plate of food can be intimidating. A small plate of food, presented so that it is pleasing to the eye, on a pretty plate on a laid table, even just a kitchen table, is much more inviting to eat than a huge plate of pie and chips with gravy, so more likely to be eaten.

Have set times for meals, and stick to them. Then when you have your morning/afternoon/evening drinks always accompany them with several squares of milk or fruit and nut chocolate.

You clearly understand the rules of nutrition better than the person who gave you this ridiculous diet sheet. Chuck it away and bring your pwn natural intelligence to the issue.

Small quantities of food you really enjoy/enjoyed, attractively presented at regular meal times and enriched with butter, cheese, fruit and veg - and plenty f chocolate with your cups of tea and coffee.

Yes, small portions of favourite foods are much more palatable.
OH made mashed potatoes which I am sure was 50% potatoes to 50% butter and I ate a reasonable portion. I hate it when we eat late.

Think the bathroom scales should be hidden - despite efforts over last two days lost another pound. Though that could be due to lack of constipation (sorry too much info).

‘All the things that diet sheet suggests……”

Have you actually have taken a look at the diet sheet MOnica?

There are lots of tasty suggestions for meals and ways to boost calories within your normal diet. And for small between meal snack.

I think it is a good diet sheet for someone In Tizliz’s position where calorie intake has become a matter of serious concern and there are nutritional needs that out of the norm.

I normally agree with you, but I think Chuck it away and bring your pwn natural intelligence to the issue., could be dangerous advice in this instance.

Lathyrus3

‘All the things that diet sheet suggests……”

Have you actually have taken a look at the diet sheet MOnica?

There are lots of tasty suggestions for meals and ways to boost calories within your normal diet. And for small between meal snack.

I think it is a good diet sheet for someone In Tizliz’s position where calorie intake has become a matter of serious concern and there are nutritional needs that out of the norm.

As described by TizLiz, it sounded revolting.

I do have experience of deaing with someone suffering from self neglect and I did exactly what i described in my lst post, tiny portions, nicely presented and enriched food, In one case slices of the Christmas cake I found in he freezer.

When he was taaken to hospital I went to see him. On his tray was a huge portion of steak pie, boiled potatoes and carrots and a lump of dark brown gelatinous gravy that you could pick up in one piece and looked like a cow turd. Beside it was a huge piece of apple tart and custard tat could be picked up like an omelette.

The nurse looked at me accusing ly and said 'He won't eat any lunch'. My response was that if that was what they were expecting him to eat, I wasn't surprised he wasn't eating it, I wouldn't want to eat it either. After that they did start offering him yoghourt and those enriched milk drinks in cartons.

My DH lost a lot of weight when he had an extended stay in hospital, TizLiz and was given a dirt sheet by the hospital nutritionist.

The food was just very high calorie because it was so high in fat - butter, cream, etc.

So I worked out healthy, palatable meals and did include butter, some cream but not in the quantities recommended.

Some people do condemn ready meals as being unhealthy because they are too high in fat but I think they do have a place, especially if you are not feeling like cooking and also need to put on weight.

M&S, Waitrose, Charlie Bigham are the ones we prefer.

I'm very sorry to hear about your diagnosis. A friend has just been diagnosed with this too.

Lathyrus3

Not arguing with you Nandalot, but I believe that high protein can actually be harmful when a patient has reached this stage in her=nutrition because the kidneys and other organs don’t have the resources to deal with it,

Calories, especially essential fats first and carbohydrates come first.

That’s interesting, Lathyrus. Helpful info.

I agree what Tizliz said was appealing for anyone, but I did take the trouble to look up the diet sheet she referred to and I think she was presenting it unfairly, perhaps to convince herself it wasn’t to be filled.

It was very comprehensive and included a whole range of foods, suggestions for tempting meals and advice on how to add a little bit and a snack there, for those with poor appetite.

I really think she should not “Chuck it away” but try to follow the advice her doctor has given her.

wasnt appealing

Allira

My DH lost a lot of weight when he had an extended stay in hospital, TizLiz and was given a dirt sheet by the hospital nutritionist.

The food was just very high calorie because it was so high in fat - butter, cream, etc.

So I worked out healthy, palatable meals and did include butter, some cream but not in the quantities recommended.

Some people do condemn ready meals as being unhealthy because they are too high in fat but I think they do have a place, especially if you are not feeling like cooking and also need to put on weight.

M&S, Waitrose, Charlie Bigham are the ones we prefer.

I'm very sorry to hear about your diagnosis. A friend has just been diagnosed with this too.

Thank you

With the help of my friend just made a cheese and lentil loaf with a good helping of cream. So that is tonight sorted

When I was underweight my GP told me to eat rice pudding made with full fat milk and cream and also puddings with custard. As someone else has said, there comes a stage when healthy eating isn’t relevant and could actually be detrimental, when the body needs fats and carbohydrates.