Patient/caregiver was educated on precautions to be taken while pureeing foods as follows:
- Pureed foods can be low in calorie count and so, pick a wide variety of foods to help needed nutrient and calorie intake. Choosing protein and calorie rich liquids, such as, condensed milk, ensure, boost, milkshake, and chicken broth to puree the foods against plain water can also help increase the nutrient and calorie intake.
- Avoid consumption of foods that have a string like consistency, such as, celery, broccoli, asparagus, rhubarb, pineapple, and noodles as they are difficult to be pureed and carry risk for choking.
- Avoid consumption of foods that are hard in consistency and difficult to be pureed, such as, walnuts, almonds, brazil nuts, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, and sunflower seeds. These foods are difficult to swallow without chewing and carry risk for choking.
- Choose tender portions and lean cuts of the meat to puree versus tough, as tender and lean portions are easier to be pureed. The meat on animal’s back is usually the most tender and as you move down and outward from the back, the meat gets tougher. So, the short loin, sirloin, tender loin, and rib meat are usually more tender than the meat from the chuck, brisket, shank, and flank. Also, exercise caution to remove all the bones from the meat, as they cannot be pureed and increase risk for choking.
- Bakery products, such as, bread, biscuits, cookies, and cakes are difficult to be pureed. These foods can be made softened and thickened into a slurry, by dissolving some gelatin in a cup of water and pouring this mixture on the bakery product, allowing it to soften. This softening and slurrying of bakery products can help with avoiding chewing and result in a safe swallow.
