My wife is in the later stages of alzheimer's. For the last year we have had to puree her food, and thicken her drinks. She is eating good, but still losing weight. Is this common in the later stages of alzheimer's?
Have you had a nutritionist calculate the calories & value of what she is eating? When food is pureed and drinks thickend it it is not always easy to gauge by sight how many calories & what types of nutrients they are getting. If she is at home and you are doing the cooking / pureeing then ask for an RN - nutritionist consult.
If she is in a SNF start dropping into the kitchen and monitoring what is actually being served. I am not trying to alarm you - but you might also ask for a meeting and update of the care plan to address the weight loss. It should include what meds she is taking, and someone at the facility should address these concerns you have. A trick in nursing homes is to thicken skim milk, or the very inexpensive juice drinks - another is to make certain that she is eating nutritionally dense foods - so a protein shake is better than 'thickened anything'.
When food is pureed and drinks thickend it it is not always easy to gauge by sight how many calories & what types of nutrients they are getting. If she is at home and you are doing the cooking / pureeing then ask for an RN - nutritionist consult.
If she is in a SNF start dropping into the kitchen and monitoring what is actually being served. I am not trying to alarm you - but you might also ask for a meeting and update of the care plan to address the weight loss. It should include what meds she is taking, and someone at the facility should address these concerns you have. A trick in nursing homes is to thicken skim milk, or the very inexpensive juice drinks - another is to make certain that she is eating nutritionally dense foods - so a protein shake is better than 'thickened anything'.