Parent losing a lot of weight

Hi Jacoland,

I'm sorry to hear this is happening. It's good you know that her teeth are not the issue. I recommend getting her checked by a doctor to see if there are any other issues that might be causing the weight loss. Has she had recent bloodwork, physical, etc?

Is she not finishing the meals in front of her or is she forgetting to eat? It could be she needs more structure if she is forgetting to eat. It could be she needs a different type of food if she is having swallowing issues. Has any of her eating behavior changed? For example, how she is chewing or coughing after drinking water? In addition to having a doctor check her, you could have a swallow study done to see if there are any underlying issues that are causing difficulty with eating.

Losing weight can also be a sign of progression to a later stage but from what you wrote, it doesn't sound as if that is where she is at.

I know someone who is in a facility and was not eating and losing weight. The staff assumed it was progression but it ended up being a medical reason. I would start there.

My wife is in memory care and is mostly bedridden. she went to a while of not wanting to eat. She is 5'3" and got down to 86 pounds and was diagnosed with failure to thrive and went on hospice. the hospice nurse made some minor changes to her medications. I don't know if that is the reason but she started eating more again is gaining a little weight back. It started with a maple bar and then some other pastries.

it might be time to consider memory care. They have specialized care for dementia. ALF (Assisted Living Facility) vs. Memory Care feeding differs mainly in specialization and support ALFs offer standard meals, while memory care provides tailored, distraction-reduced dining with staff trained for cognitive impairment addressing issues like wandering, confusion, or difficulty eating common with dementia, often with flexible schedules and snack options to ensure adequate nutrition and dignity.