Signs of dementia, like forgetting important names and dates or seeing things that aren’t there, are pretty common. But new studies show that how you eat your food could indicate whether or not you’ve got a condition called frontotemporal dementia. The uncommon subtype of dementia affects about one in every 20 dementia patients. Some neurologists and geriatricians describe it as a term for a group of dementias that mainly affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, which are responsible for personality, behavior, language, and speech. And unlike other forms of dementia, its early stages may not always be characterized by memory loss or impaired concentration. Instead, one of the symptoms of behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bv FTD) is “obsessive or repetitive behavior” ― and that can extend to food.
Eating and drinking can be more difficult if a person’s routine and diet are changed. For example, the person may be used to having different portion sizes, or eating more or less regularly throughout the day. By understanding a person’s life experiences and preferences, you can support them to eat and drink.
Thinking about a person’s life history can be useful to understanding their present attitude towards food. Dementia can cause ‘time-shifting’. This is when a person believes they are in an earlier period of their life.
Common Types of Dementia and Symptoms
Alzheimer’s Disease: The most common cause of dementia, characterized by the buildup of amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain. It typically starts with memory loss and progresses to affect other cognitive abilities.
Vascular Dementia: The second most common type, caused by reduced blood flow to the brain, often due to strokes or other vascular conditions. Symptoms can vary depending on the affected brain region and can appear suddenly or gradually.
Lewy Body Dementia (LBD): Characterized by abnormal protein deposits called Lewy bodies in the brain. It often involves fluctuating alertness, visual hallucinations, and movement problems similar to Parkinson’s disease.
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD): A group of disorders that primarily affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, leading to changes in personality, behavior, and language. It tends to occur at a younger age than Alzheimer’s.
Mixed Dementia: A combination of two or more types of dementia, most commonly Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. The symptoms can vary depending on the combination and the extent of brain changes.
Eating Changes to Be Aware of
Some changes in eating behavior can alert family members to possible concerns about aging love ones. This can be particularly useful with FTD, which often comes on earlier than Alzheimer’s Disease. Since the symptoms are different and less familiar, people who suffer from this form of dementia may miss the early signs.
A sudden love of sweets
Individuals who begin to gorge on sweets uncontrollably should talk with their family doctor about this change. While they may decide that they just need to use more willpower, this new behavior can actually be a sign of the underlying disease.
Missing out on meals
An early sign of Alzheimer’s Disease can be forgetting to eat — not because the patient is involved in a really exciting sporting event or deeply focused at work but because they don’t realize that it is time for a meal.
Too Focused on their “favorite” food
Obsession with a particular food, such as insisting on eating a single food at every meal, is another early warning sign.
Wanting food, but can’t get it down
Some of the changes in eating habits seen in dementia patients are physical: difficulty in swallowing, for example, or difficulty getting food from the plate to the mouth.
Selfish with their food
Others signs are behavioral. For example, people with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) may develop binge eating, or even snatch food away from other people.
Hungry for things, not Food
Those with Alzheimer’s Disease may try to eat things that are not food, possibly because they are confused about the object’s purpose, or may change their food preferences entirely.
How to Cope with Changing Eating Habits
Support the person to make their own choices as much as possible, even if the food combinations seem unusual or are different to what they have always liked to eat.
Be led by the person on when they prefer to eat. Some people like a light lunch and larger evening meal and others prefer a main meal in the middle of the day. This may be different to when they have previously wanted to eat.
The person’s preferences about how they eat may have changed. They may prefer to talk and be sociable while eating, while others might not like this.
Consider the environment the person prefers to eat in – at a table or sitting on the sofa, while watching TV or listening to music, or in silence.
If the person does not seem to be enjoying their food, experiment to find out what types of flavours the person might prefer now. You could use herbs and spices, sauces and chutneys to enhance flavours.
Consider trying food the person has never eaten before, but remember the person’s beliefs and personal preferences about certain foods.
If a person often enjoys sweet foods, a healthier option might be fruit or naturally sweet vegetables. Adding small amounts of honey, syrup or jam to food can also help.
