Healthy way to gain weight - for an elderly man

[glowfrog]

Hi all, not sure if it’s quite the right place to ask but my father (84) has recently been unwell and lost about 10kg - and it’s not weight he can afford not to have. Im visiting him next week for a week and would like to try and help him regain a little weight. Any recommendations for generally healthy meals and snacks to do that? I need to see if he’s happy to eat nuts. He says he’s got appetite but just can’t eat much.

@ShinyAppleDreamingOfTheSea he’s in France and seems to be reasonably well followed overall - I will be able to know more once I’m there tomorrow. A nurse comes in every day to check he’s taking all his medication so I’ll mention it then, or get my dad to specifically request this from his GP.

Yes, I was thinking about making soups and adding crème fraîche, as well as looking at smoothies. Also mashed potatoes with lots of butter. He eats porridge so I’m going to try and make it the way I have mine - with banana and peanut butter. I’ll see if I can switch him to full fat milk and Greek yogurt / fromage frais from his usual semi-skimmed and plain yogurt, but noted on possible need to mix fats and carbs.

@ShinyAppleDreamingOfTheSeai realise now you were responding to someone else 😂🤦🏻‍♀️🙈 apologies, do ignore me

Focus on things he likes.

The pattiserie could be helpful here. Especially things with custard in as that has the eggs nutrition as well as the carb and fats.

There's a reason hospitals always offer a pudding. Also a little cheese after a meal is a good way to get extra calories. Choose some of the sweeter fruits such as mango.

I wouldnt have thought he will have a referral to a nutrionist, he isnt underweight according to BMI, he is just conscious that he wants to put on weight and to be honest another stay in hospital might deplete him further and he is probably likely to have this happen again.

I'll suggest smoothies, not sure if that is his cup of tea, he likes a proper dinner. He loves cooking so is able to put lots of ideas in process

I know he wants his blood sugars under control though.

An update; although not sure who will read it. It was good spending a week with my dad but it’s now official that he has bladder cancer and he’s too weak to get any treatment done. He ate better for the first few days I was there then less and less and from what his carer says, almost nothing for the last 2 days.

I’m planning to go back Tuesday but I don’t hold much hope that there’s much I can do, except hopefully bring him some comfort from my being there.

I don’t suppose anyone here has an experience similar to mine where the person involved rallied a bit and got some appetite back? Or found there was something that helped that I could advocate for with the doctors?

Be mindful of pain management, managing digestive issues (constipation and diarrhoea both put people off eating) and oral health (sore teeth / gums put people off eating).

Sod healthy - if ice cream appeals, that will help with energy.

Smoothies, avocado, pate, pasta dishes, sugar free cordial added to water.

I would suggest he might try consuming milk-based shakes between his regular meals.

Whiz up in a blender a large glass of whole milk, half a banana, a whole raw egg and a handful of raspberries. That packs in 16g of protein, which will help to build him up.

I'm very sorry about the diagnosis, glowfrog. Do they think 'too weak for treatment' is down to the lack of appetite or other causes?

In the circumstances, I think you should be able to get fortifying drinks prescribed.

Does he like cheese? Peanut butter? Avocado? Mashed potato? Creamy soups?

I'm sorry about the diagnosis. When my frail multiple morbidities grandma lost a lot of weight, I focused on bringing her the sort of treats she really liked but couldn't necessarily justify. Basically cream cakes. Lots of cream cakes. Are there any favourites of his that you could try to tempt him with?

My DM lost a lot of weight last winter and has been having protein shakes since her last medical checkup. The doctor also ordered full fat ice cream a few times a week, plus at least four eggs a week, full fat cream cheese and cottage cheese, cheese sauce on broccoli and cauliflower, butter and preferably also jam on bread (no more Flora or other lower fat spreads), sausages, black and white pudding, biscuits with her tea, and if she makes a dish like scrambled eggs she puts powdered milk in it. Also treats like kitkat bars, sandwich biscuits, whipped cream in coffee...

Does your dad have his own teeth or does he wear dentures? Loose or uncomfortable dentures can affect appetite and result in a limited diet.

When I need to put on weight I have Complan chocolate milkshakes and a cheese omelette as supper on top or my usual meals.

Forget the teeth.

So sorry to hear of the diagnosis.

Thank you very much for all the replies, much appreciated. I should edit the title of this thread because I agree about forgetting “healthy”! He’s not been getting on with the various protein rich drinks we’ve tried, including the ones prescribed for him. Apparently yesterday he managed 2 protein-fortified soups - although I’m not sure whether he ate 2 portions, or 1 portion in 2 parts.

It also seems like he has some food cravings but then can’t eat when he’s presented with what he’s wished for.

I’m going back Wednesday and hopefully last week will have turned out to be a blip and he’ll be able to eat a little more…

Adding:

For the first part of the week I was there, he was having pizza and ice-cream and it was great to see - but then has gone downhill since. He’s had to take antibiotics so I don’t know if that could be having an impact.

My dad was on ensure - but be careful when he drinks them as they made him to full to eat a meal!
I also agree with puddings - creamy ones and he has creamy porridge in the morning

Some antibiotics can. For instance clarithromycin tends to give you a lingering bad taste in your mouth (tart sweets can help), and doxycycline is known for causing nausea.

My ds is underweight due to an illness & I was told to give him a hot pudding & custard after every meal.

Full fat milk, protein, grate cheese & add butter to most savoury meals. Plus he had a meal replacement shake as a snack to add more calories.

Thank you, that’s really useful to know! He’s due to finish the course on Wednesday- if that’s been causing issues, hopefully he’ll be able to eat more from then on.