Eats Too Much

Your loved one:

• Forgets having eaten (even when he just left the table minutes earlier).
• Loses the ability to register the sensation of fullness.

Here are a few suggestions you can try:

• Serve food restaurant style (brought to the table all on one plate) rather than family style (with serving dishes on the table), which invites second and third helpings.
• If the person is an all-day snacker, make the available snacks low-calorie and filling, such as popcorn, apple slices, raw vegetables with yogurt dip (make sure choking isn't a hazard).
• Provide the person with plenty of activities to engage in to distract him between meals, since overeating may fill the vacuum of not having anything to do.
• Store snacks out of sight and out of reach, so the person has to ask for them rather than help himself.
• Don't deny the person food that you're eating yourself; instead, limit portions.
• Reassess any of your own habits that might be encouraging the person with dementia to overeat (such as mindless eating while watching TV), given that he has less self-control.

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Dementia Signage for the Home