an article of david shorthead of Care Management of
There is a large number of older people with chewing problems, swallow and eat food with its usual consistency. These problems can cause risk of bronchial aspiration, that is, the accidental aspiration of liquids or food through the respiratory tract. In other older ones they may appear swallowing difficultiesthe action by which food passes from the mouth to the stomach, passing through the pharynx and esophagus.
These people are forced to ingest soft or crushed foodsa, turning their meals into unappetizing moments and that generate little enthusiasm. In the long run, this situation can cause the elderly to lose their appetite, feel quickly satiated with little they eat, or even give up a wide variety of dishes.
The food texturing becomes a therapeutic and also culinary alternative. The texture of a food refers to the properties and sensations that it generates in the sense of touch, both through the mouth and through the hands, when we touch the food.
Through the texturing technique, it is possible to preserve or even enhance the original colours, smells and flavors of food, take care of its taste and appearance, favoring the food to be more appetizing and more enjoyable. This technique is key to helping the elderly to have more interest in food and its consumption, which directly affects the quality of their diet and nutrition.
It is a technique that allows provide food with a suitable and safe consistency for ingestionin addition to allowing the realization of varied foods to achieve a diet that is as complete as possible, which results in a better nutritional state of the elderly.
The texturing of food combines advantages, on the one hand, healthcare and, on the other, gastronomy. The textured menus become one therapeutic and culinary alternative. Basically what is done is to process food in a different way than usual. For example, liquids are thickened or solids are crushed, food is prepared so that it is homogeneous, smooth and easy to chew. Even, liquids can be given a semi-solid consistency as in the case of vegetable creams, purees, yogurts or custards.
Recipe blog written by seniors for seniors
To promote the texturing technique, Sanitas Mayores promoted the initiative Major Chef in which different cooking workshops in their Sanitas Mayores residences with culinary tests in the most television style.
The action was received with great enthusiasm by the more than 5,000 residents who participated in these workshops and served to highlight the importance of nutrition in the elderly and discover and share culinary recipes where texturing was the key.
As a result of this initiative, a large number of traditional cooking recipes in textured versions were compiled on the blog to help the elderly enjoy a nutritious, balanced and attractive diet.
Among the recipes collected, you can find dishes as classic as potato omelette, ratatouille with egg or French toast to more sophisticated recipes, such as stuffed peppers, stuffed turkey or Edison pudding, explained step by step and in a textured version.