Parent refusing to eat (everything tastes bad apparently) and generally not ^trying^ after a stay in hospital.

Has she had Covid? Parosnia as a common after effect. My DD had extremely limited diet for 6 months as everything tasted and smelled disgusting.

I'm really sorry to hear this. Sadly, attains and changes to routine can exacerbate dementia. My MIL fell and broke her hip and was taken into hospital, and she deteriorated really fast - couldn't recognise anyone, forgot how to eat. It was terrible.

I think you need some help. Did the hospital give you a number to contact if you had any questions after your mum was discharged? They should have a dietician who could help.

Care homes … dish up beige tasteless mush and wonder why people don’t eat it. It’s the same with chemo. Not my experience

Try a small glass of sherry before attempting a meal?

Sherry is sweet and palatable and it really does help provoke appetite.

It has been introduced as a regular thing (medication allowing) in some care-homes.

It wasn't an elderly parent but my dd we had to coax back to eating. We had to literally try everything however bad for you they were. The key bizarrely turned out to be crème caramel, the 6 pack ones from the refrigerated section in the supermarket - something my nanna ate following loosing her appetite too. Once we got her eating something we added slowly tiny portions of things she loved, small is key because a large plateful is off putting. With my dd it was mh - she still struggles to eat when stressed but has improved.

With grandmother in law (dementia) I managed to feed her fairly well even though her care home said she didn't eat using the distraction method (no idea if a real thing!) anyway put the tv on, plus chat away ;one sided of course she didn't talk by then) and shovelled in food. She only ate for me for the last few months so I drove 80 miles a day to do it

A pp said once you fall out the habit of eating it can be difficult to start again. This is really true and also after long fasting a lot of food can taste far too rich... After a period in hospital when I couldn't eat I found a hobnob overpowering. Things like croissants and fruit were a good thing to start off with for me.

Does she ask for anything in particular or is she not able to? Literally anything she will eat is good - forget healthy eating regimes, its calories and fluids and sometimes stronger flavours or particular flavours or textures or temperatures can help.

Fortified drinks are not amazingly palatable in my experience and may not be the answer.

The metallic taste can be horrible. I had it as side effect of HG in two of my pregnancies and even though mentally I was entirely rational I just could not eat and struggled with water. It must be awful to feel like that and not be able to rationalise it and it is worryingly difficult to help. If puddings work go for the puddings, don't worry about the rest - its just about calories and fluids for now.

@lostinwales I saw the comment uptrend about water tasting metallic after pneumonia. I had the same experience with Covid. Homemade elderflower cordial, made with brown sugar, was the only palatable drink for several days. Try eg lemon and honey, sweetened with extra brown sugar? And ice cream. You are being a lovely daughter. X

Great advice here. I second getting the gp out to review her - if they can do a home visit that would be best. Agree blood test might be good and also think worth while ruling at a low level uti.

Hydration sounds like it could be an issue - ice lollies might help if she's refusing to drink much. Lucazade sport too, if she'll take it. Jellies and fruit have good water content and might taste better to her.

Fortified drinks are revolting. I've had them and find they also repeat on me, the fruit ones are v acidic and burn my gullet on the way down (not literally obviously).

Get a blue plate and bowl. Might not help with the taste but food looks much more appealing on a blue and its recommended for the elderly and dementia patients as it helps them to eat.

Finger food was the breakthrough for my grandma when she was in hospital.

If she's not getting on with sweet things, maybe plain foods or those with a good umami base?

My grandpa could always be tempted by rice pudding. Will she snack on crisps or nuts? If you can get some salt in her she might start drinking more.

You'll need to Google for details, but temperature, smell and ambient sound can all affect how we perceive taste. I read something this weekend about how holding a warm bowl can make a difference and lots of high end restaurants and experimental chefs play about with other senses to enhance food (part of the reason aeroplane food tastes bad is for similar reasons).

Can you eat with her at the table? Communal eating can help sometimes. Or can she help with food prep? If you can engage her in the process, she might feel better about eating.

The hospital didnt help my nan get out of bed to go the toilet
So she didnt drink because she didnt want to wet herself

When she come home, she kept thinking she was still in the hospital so didnt want to eat and drink incase she needed the toilet

Sorry, haven’t read the whole thread - but my mum currently has flu / chest infection and she says everything tastes awful - she’s much less tolerant to sweet things but in general really struggles to eat at the moment, and she’s pretty aware that she needs to. No dementia, usually fit and active (mid-70s). Hope your mum feels better soon.

I agree. I had this with my dad recently. Unfortunately he ended up dying, and lost his appetite as he went down hill. He got quite cross at me trying to keep shoving food in him. I don’t think the hospital helped at all, putting meals and drinks where it was hard to reach, or pee pots out of reach so he was scared to drink in case he wet himself. Eventually they lose the habit of eating or trying to eat.

Ice cream was always a good bet. We got Mac Donald’s milkshakes too, which are high calorie too. Hot chocolate persuaded him to drink at night too.

Good luck OP, keep trying, it’s thankless being a carer sometimes.

Oooh, and Potassium was really low so worth asking for some blood tests too

Can a spell in hospital supercharge a dementia, it's like she was showing signs before but moving about and eating/drinking perfectly normally and now she's full on 'gone'.

Sadly, yes. And two weeks is a long time. Just three or four days sent my MIL into a serious decline, and it also terrified her.
We came to an agreement with the care home that she had to go into following the hospital admission, that she would not be admitted to hospital should she become ill.

Time in hospital can change an older person
my 87 year old nan was in hospital with pneumonia also had delirium while in there
She wasnt fed well in there and lost alot of weight, she was also treated very badly

She came out with Thrush in her mouth from antibiotics and also ‘everything’ tasted horrid for her

It took lots of love, understanding and lots of extra talking, comforting, talks, and little and often food and drinks.
Apple juice went down well
It took afew months for her to go back to normal

I lost my taste and smell with Covid and found acidic flavours (lemon and vinegar), salty and spicy food best at first rather than sweet. Chips with vinegar were good and curry. Spiced soup is another good one. Both my grandmother and my father noticed with age that their taste buds were affected, especially after illness, they both liked spicer foods particularly Thai food with fresh lime juice. When my Dad is poorly and goes off food my husband makes him Guinness punch and we give him cake. Chai instead of regular tea might work and lemon, lime and ginger drinks.

jamaicanfoodsandrecipes.com/guinness-punch/

My mother has dementia, further down the line than yours but she also has difficulty re motivation to get up and eating.
She is in a lovely care home and gets nutrition supplements and all the help she needs but the GP has also put her on anti depressants which have helped. Apparently depression can be quite common amongst dementia patients.

I don’t need this advice yet, but what a font of knowledge and generosity you al are!

OP delirium can also take a while to fully clear. My grandfather was admitted with pneumonia recently and as a result had pretty severe delirium. The admitting a&e doctor made us aware that NICE guidelines say it can take 6 weeks or more for it to fully clear and that regressions are possible (i.e. they slip in and out of delirium).

Hope you find something that she'll tolerate food and drink wise. when I cared for dementia patients a lot of them had a wicked sweet tooth. Might be worth just indulging that and seeing if it helps get some calories in (as long as she's not diabetic etc!) X

Those little pots of jelly are good, sweet and a good way to keep hydrated.

Other things to consider are not doing water with meals (as it can fill them up without calories), giving more control by offering finger foods rather than things that need cutlery, encouraging them rather than feeding them. More opine lollies.
Try a sherry before meals and encourage snacking rather than a big main meal. Egg mayo or coronation chicken sandwiches, toasted tea cake or fingers of cheese on toast rather than soup.

OP I’ve just had pneumonia and as with previous times, everything tastes like metal, unless it’s super sugary. It might clear after a while for your mum.

ftankly I’m taking the opportunity to lose weight but while a body is recovering, it has a lot to do so the hard work of digestion can be a problem.

maybe mention it to the doc in case there’s an imbalance of minerals or electrolytes etc.

How is your DMs swallow ? Does she have a wet cough ? Has she had a swallow assessment from SALT? People with dementia and especially after an illness can lose their appetite. It's a natural part of the disease progression. Hospital also increases decline, it's a busy chaotic place so no good for someone who needs a low stim environment.

I would offer her things you know she's likes many people with dementia like sweet foods ! Does she have any favourite unhealthy foods or takeaways ? This now may be a gradual decline in your mum's health but it's a waiting game.