His experience with nausea and vomiting may change constantly, making it tough to figure out what to serve on any given day, says Redwing Keyssar, palliative care coordinator for Seniors-at-Home, a program of Jewish Family and Children's Services in the San Francisco Bay Area.
"You need to be observant and notice everything that seems to contribute to the nausea and keep track of what you're seeing," Keyssar says. She recommends keeping a log and writing down "all the strange little details," such as times of day that he was able to eat or not eat, and anything you notice that was going on prior to a bout of nausea. "Write down everything -- 'I tried to give my father this, and he got sick,' or 'at 3 p.m. three days in a row he felt sick.' Don't rely on memory," she says.
After doing this for a few days, you might notice that he has a better appetite in the late morning, so you'll start serving an early lunch. Or you might observe that certain foods seem to trigger a "nausea backlash" a little later, even if he feels fine while eating them.
Keeping careful track of someone's battle with nausea and lack of appetite will also help you work with his doctor to get more help, Keyssar says. "If you become better at assessment and communicating what you're seeing, it will help his doctor think about what to try next."
The journal keeping advice.
I know someone who had cancer and he couldn't keep anything down either. He told me what worked for him was Instant Breakfast packets (e.g., Carnation Instant Breakfast) and they tasted good to him. They also provide nutrients if this is the only thing you are taking in. I needed an alternative for my mother, who has AD and has lost 12 lbs. in the last 6 mos. Her dr. wants her to gain some weight and recommended Ensure, but she doesn't like the taste of the canned drink. You might try the instant breakfast or the Ensure. The most important thing is to get the person some nutrition. Hope this helps.
The only thing my father loves to eat /drink is seedless red grapes from local fruit stand or chocalate malts from Beefaroo. We have several dr. appts. so we let him pick his favorite place to eat and let him decide what he will eat. Its always the malts. I think he enjoys being around people that do not appear sick like the people at the dr. office.
Does anyone have any idea for foods to feed your parent when they say they just can't eat anything? I have a friend right now going through chemo for breast cancer and she just can't keep anything down. I even tried smoothies and she couldn't drink them. Please, any suggestions?