Suggestions for snacks to gain weight

Beauchene105

My mom (age 94, PWD) is eating so little that the NP put her on Periactin. I keep Boost on hand, but she refuses it. She used to have a sweet tooth but still hasn't wanted to even open box of Valentine's day candy! I want to make her a snack basket to keep on hand with *somewhat* healthy snacks that might appeal. Thinking peanut butter crackers, etc. She hasn't many teeth left (refuses dentures or partials) so they must be easy to chew. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. I'm running out of ideas-

zauberflote

Neither my mother nor MIL liked Boost-- and have you tried it?!?! Ick! One of MIL's in-home caregivers made her "'milkshakes" by adding ice cream to the Boost. Calories, and sweet. MIL enjoyed those for some time until she didn't. 

There comes a time when we may have to say, my LO is in her 90's, she can eat or not eat whatever she likes! 

Beauchene105

Thanks...that's kind of where we are! I guess it's one of the last ways to kind of control something...I just hate to see her get so weak when she's already fall-prone. Broken arm last year, broken leg the year before, broken shoulder before that. My dad died from broken pelvis complications and it was such a grueling experience for him.

Ed1937

Most like ice cream.

BassetHoundAnn

Nuts have excellent nutritional value plus high fat content, if she can still chew those. 

I make my mom super-soft cookies that she likes and sometimes add ground nuts. 

HappyCatCA

My dad loves hot chocolate, so we make that but use a mix of whole milk and a chocolate Ensure drink instead of water. he drinks it right down. He does not like Ensure (or similar drinks) cold because of the texture. If sugar is a concern, there are sugar free cocoa mixes too.

Kay82

Any nut can be ground into nut butter similar to peanut butter, if she likes nuts. For hydration purposes soups have been my go-to food. Any soup or stew could be blended for smoothness then you are not just using cream soups all the time.

Debdg

Peanut butter and jelly sandwich? I know you are limited in your choices because of the lack of the th. I heard that if you purée pb&j you get a peanut butter pudding like food that is palatable.

May flowers

My FIL liked Ensure and any kind of snack bar with chocolate in it. He liked cliff bars, chewy granola bars, and nutrigrain. 

He liked everything with gravy on it - so we did white gravy on eggs and brown on potatoes. 

Beauchene105

Thank you, everyone.

caregiving daughter

Memory care used to give my mom yogurt every day for this reason

LittleVolcano

I'm struggling to think of soft foods that can be left out:

Someone in another thread mentioned Jelly Drops, but those are more for hydration. Maybe good quality (ie, softer) Swedish Fish or similar?

Maybe check out "keto fat bomb" (savory or sweet) recipes on the internet? But substitute any artificial sugars with real sugar (artificial sugars can cause gastric upset). 

In general, here's what my mom really likes that's soft:

Loaded mashed potatoes, banana bread, ice cream, Cuties orange slices, finger sandwiches (chopped olive and mayo, liverwurst, turkey/avocado), green smoothies (any smoothie, really), eggs, my homemade salmon cakes.

JMack88

When my great grandmother refused to eat and couldn't keep weight on, my grandmother who was a nurse used to make her a daily "milkshake."  This consisted of Ensure, heavy cream, chocolate ice cream, and a banana blended together and put in a McDonald's paper cup with a lid and straw.  You could also substitute strawberry or other fruit.  The McDonald's cup made it seem like a special treat bought at a restaurant to Nana.

Beauchene105

Thanks everyone: the Periactin WAS having amazing results. On Thanksgiving she was gobbling (no pun intended) the turkey and dressing! I couldn't believe the difference a week of that medication made. But today she thinks "someone told her not to eat" and won't eat. We begged her to tell us who said that and she said "the baker". I tried to tell her she probably just had a bad dream, but she is refusing to eat. So I guess the dementia can overrule the medicine at times.

AConcernedSon

I vote for PB&J. My dad was losing weight, lost his upper denture but always loved PB&J so every time we visit we bring one and it has helped keep his weight up. Also focusing as much as possible on soft foods--if it's a "I'm frustrated because I can't chew this item and it makes me feel worse" issue

ZoeS

I make peanut butter cookies that have oatmeal and honey in them and they are soft.  That seems to work pretty well.  They are sweet but not too sweet and no refined sugar.

Ci2Ci

Have had this issue with LO/PWD who has voracious appetite and eats huge portions, but still was losing weight. Wanted healthy options; non-perishable; while trying to avoid added sugar.  Same, few teeth. Couple things that I kept on hand:

OWYN plant-based protein drinks**
Aloha plant-based protein bars**
Applesauce cups (no added sugar option available)

** can attest that the chocolate flavors are delicious!!

Ci2Ci

Ci2Ci wrote:

Have had this issue with LO/PWD who has voracious appetite and eats huge portions, but still was losing weight. Wanted healthy options; non-perishable; while trying to avoid added sugar.  Same, few teeth. Couple things that I kept on hand:

OWYN plant-based protein drinks**
Aloha plant-based protein bars**
Applesauce cups (no added sugar option available)

** can attest that the chocolate flavors are delicious!!

P.S. -- Since, neurologist put her on low-dose Mirtazapine to help with sleep & anxiety, and also for weight gain. She has gained weight.

NeilCaldwell

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CanyonGal

My mother went through 8 mo. of refusing to eat. It was one of the reasons she is on hospice -weight loss. She just push food away and say she wasn't allowed to eat it. She was put on Mirtazapine too. When I put her in Memory Care, she suddenly decided to eat, but still has days where she's not having it.

Boost has a pudding but it is expensive. BOOST Pudding | BOOST Nutritional Drinks

My mother would eat the snack pack puddings, various flavors, and yogurts.

Ensure has recipes

Recipes with Ensure® Nutritional Drinks | Ensure®

My mom refused to drink Ensure or Boost.

It was extremely hard to watch her starve herself and having to coax her to get something down. She can swallow fine. She just didn't want to eat and wanted to lay in bed ALL DAY LONG. Then when she was moved to Memory Care, she started becoming more active.