Common Therapeutic Diets
A therapeutic diet is a planned menu that restricts the intake of certain types of foods, which is normally prescribed by a physician and designed by a licensed dietitian. Assisted living homes will also provide therapeutic services to seniors when ordered by a licensed seniors physician.
A therapeutic diet is usually modified from the seniors existing diet and is tailored fit to meet all the nutrients that are needed in a balanced diet.
Therapeutic diets are can be modified for many different reasons, such as nutrients, texture, and food allergies or food intolerance.
Therapeutic diets can be ordered:
- To re-establish nutritional position
- To reduce calories for the purpose of controlling weight
- To increase calories for the purpose of weight gain
- To balance carbohydrates, fat, and protein for the purpose of diabetes
- To decrease the amount of sodium
- To offer texture modifications due to problems with chewing or Swallowing
Common therapeutic diets:
Clear liquid senior diet –
- Includes the smallest amount of fluids.
- There are many examples such as Juices without pulp, broth soup, and different kinds of Jell-O’s.
- Usually is the first step to restarting oral feeding after surgical procedures.
- Can also be used for fluid and the replacement of electrolyte in individuals with diarrhea problems.
- Should not be used for an extensive period of time and it does not supply the proper amount of calories and nutrients.
Full liquid Senior diet –
- Includes fluids that are soft
- Includes ice cream, flavored puddings, hot cereals, custard, strained creamy soups, and different juices with pulp.
- Usually is the second step to restarting oral feeding once clear liquids are tolerated.
- Used for seniors who cannot endure a mechanical soft diet.
- Should not be used for extended periods of times.
No Concentrated Sweets (NCS) senior diet –
- Is considered a loose diet for diabetics when their weight and blood sugar levels are under control.
- It includes normal foods without the adding of any additional sugar.
- Calories are not counted as in ADA calorie restricted diets.
Diabetic or calorie controlled Senior diet (ADA) –
- These diets restricted calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat intake in balanced amounts to meet dietary needs, control blood sugar levels, and control weight.
- The Most frequently used calorie levels are: 1,200, 1,500, 1,800 and 2,000.
No Added Salt (NAS) Senior diet –
- Is a frequently used diet with no salt shakers on the tables.
- Food is lightly seasoned as standard food.
Low Sodium (LS) senior diet –
- Can also be named a 2 gram Sodium Diet.
- restricts salt and salty foods such as bacon, sausage, cured meats, canned soups, salty seasonings, pickled foods and saltine crackers, just to name a few.
- Is used for people who may be “retaining water” or who have high blood pressure, heart disease, liver disease, or beginning stages of kidney disease.
Low fat/low cholesterol senior diet –
- Is frequently used to decrease fat levels and treat health conditions that Interfere with how the body uses fat such as diseases of the liver, gallbladder, or and pancreas.
- Is used to restrict fat to 50 grams or no more than 30% calories resulting from fat.
- Is lower in total fat and saturated fats and contains just about 250-300 mg cholesterol.
High fiber Senior diet –
- Is usually prescribed for the prevention of gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases.
- Increased fiber can from many different sources including fruits, vegetables, whole bread and cereals.
Renal senior diet –
- Is for renal/kidney individuals.
- The diet plan is personalize depending on if the senior is on dialysis.
- It restricts sodium, potassium, fluid, and protein specified levels.
- The Lab work is followed closely.
Mechanically altered or soft senior diet –
- Are usually used when there are issues with chewing and swallowing.
Changes the consistency of the regular diet to a softer texture. - Includes sliced or ground meats as well as sliced or ground raw fruits and vegetables.
- Are usually used for seniors with poor dental conditions, missing teeth, no teeth, or a condition known as dysphasia.
Pureed senior diet –
- Changes the usual diet by pureeing it to a soft liquid constancy.
- Are for those with wired jaws extremely poor dentition in which chewing is inadequate.
- Often thinned down so it can pass through a straw.
- Is for people with chewing or swallowing and
Foods must be pureed separately.dysphasia conditions - Avoid all types of nuts, seeds, raw vegetables, and raw fruits.
- Is nutritionally sufficient when offering all food groups.
Food allergy modification for seniors –
- Foods continuing allergies are solely eliminated from the diet.
- Suitable replacements are made to ensure that the meal is adequate.
- The most general food allergens are milk, egg, soy, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, and shellfish.
- Most gluten free diets eliminate all kinds wheat, rye, and barley and it is replaced with potato, corn, and rice products.
Food intolerance modification for seniors –
- Intolerance to lactose (milk sugar), because of the reduced amount of an
enzyme in the body. - Other types of food intolerances include poor reactions to certain products added to food to improve taste, color, or protect against bacterial growth.
- Some of the most frequent symptoms involving food intolerances are vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and headaches.