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Gave my mom a large honeybun all cut up on a plate with milk for a snack, and within an hour my mom got aggressive with me. Is this common with dementia?
Some months ago I did research on contributing factors, including sugar, and decided to cut out sugar, and chocolate, as I suspected it was also affecting and delaying healing of a back injury I had sustained. I could see the change in a few days, and although I relapse occasionally, my consumption will never return to pre-injury levels.
I can also tell the effect when I relapse and have a cookie.
It makes sense to me, w/o finding supporting research, that sugar's affect on the human brain accelerates its activity, and with dementia in the picture, it could be heightened.
Also look up the sugar in milk. It might surprise you. My DH is diabetic. He will drink a glass of milk thinking he is having a “healthy” snack then wonder why his blood sugar reading jumps up. Great you made the connection.
Sugar did effect my mom and tended to make her agitated and more aggressive. I found that even peanut butter would cause behavior issues. Sometimes she would want a candy bar, I would give in with a mini Halloween size treat, then she would want more and more. She was a sugar junkie as long as I could remember. I think that her consumption of sugar also was a factor in developing Alzheimer's.
Check the ingredients of the PB. Most common brands use sugar in it (yuck!) Too many foods today have added sugar. Cheap filler and it is also addictive.
Drastic mood changes are all too common in dementia which unfortunately worsens over time. It happened to my dad over a period of several years. I'm sorry you're going through this. I don't think sugary foods are the cause at all.
Fortunately sugar consumption has not caused my husband to become aggressive, since just about everything he eats is coated with a huge layer of cinnamon sugar. The day he put cinnamon sugar on plate of sardines his caregiver and I had to leave the dining room before we vomited.
This is an interesting question. I would not discount it. Caffeine either. When my grandson was taking ADHD meds he was not allowed any caffeine because it interacted with the meds he was on. Sugar gives you an immediate high and the high comes down quickly. All you can do is experiment. If you find sugar seems to be the culprit, then stop giving it to her.
Our elderly and those who are mentally challenge like sweets because its an instant gratification. Elderly tend to loose taste as they age but sugar they seem to still be able to taste. What do you want food that tastes blah because u can no longer taste or sugar you can.
I doubt it, but you could do some experimentation with elimination diets and sugars to find out for yourself. Everyone is as individual as a fingerprint.
Not much information found about how sugar might affect those who already have dementia, but it is indicated as one of many things that can contribute in some way to dementia. The only articles about sugar and aggression focus on ADHD, bipolar and the like, but it is a possibility it might affect some. Not every dementia patient has the same symptoms and behaviors - they share a lot, but each person is unique.
That said, do beware. It isn't just added sugar or candies/sweets. So many packaged food items today contain sugar, foods that don't even need sugar. Why? It's a cheap filler and it's also addictive. If possible, eliminate processed foods (boxed, canned, bottled) and make your own. The more natural the state of the food item, the better. Then if sugar is required in the recipe, YOU can control how much to use and when. Funny story - when my daughter was in middle school, she gave a chocolate chip cookie to the bus driver. The driver caught up with me and said she HAD to have my recipe! I told her to use the one on the back of the chocolate chip bag, but cut BOTH sugars in half. That was it!
Read ingredient labels of food items you buy - not just that white label they slapped on more recently, the ingredients. I was appalled years ago to see sugar in PB. The PB we ate as kids are what is now sold as "natural" PB. There's NO need for sugar in PB (should be peanuts and maybe some salt) or many other foods it is in now. Even worse, for those trying to cut calories to lose weight, beware those "fat-free" or "low-fat" items. In removing the fats, the taste is lost, so they add SUGAR! Might as well just slather it on your hips. My research and goal was to avoid cholesterol meds and though it took a while (the "experts" have become enlightened since then), one of the items to avoid was hydrogenated oil, partially or fully. This is used to extend "shelf life" of products. Avoid that if you can! That's also when I started reading ingredients. Even "healthy" items like granola bars are BAD.
I make my own pasta sauce, no sugar needed. Most of the foods I buy are plain frozen or fresh fruits and veggies, nothing added, and meat, though I don't eat a lot of that. I eliminated soda long ago, and the one time I had one later, it nearly gagged me. Any recipe that does call for sugar, I cut the amount down, usually half of what's listed. Oh, on the topic of soda - another item to ditch, esp diet sodas. If I need fizz, I drink sparkling water (carbonated) but always check ingredients for sugar or artificial sweetener and any other nasty ingredients. Read this:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/310909
Also, when reading the ingredients, know that they also try to "hide" the added sugar by calling it by other names. Check this site for some more info:
For the most part, food items naturally contain sugar, in varying amounts. This isn't the biggest concern, it is the added REFINED and modified sugars that likely cause the most problems. The body has to work to break down natural sugars in the food we eat. Refined sugar is already broken down, so again, slather it on your hips rather than ingesting it! Take the time to prepare your foods from scratch to eliminate these hidden dangers.
For OP or anyone else who might observe this change in behavior, about the best you can do is try trial and error (almost forgot - with any abrupt sudden change in behavior/demeanor, check for UTI or other infection.) Cut down sugary and hidden sugar items and monitor behavior for a few weeks. If no instances, perhaps try it one day and if it happens again, you'd have your answer.
Sounds good! Honeybuns are one of my favorites! But sugary foods are not good for us, and it's best to offer them only occasionally. The trouble with sugar is also that it's addictive, once you start eating sugary foods, it's hard to stop. It's also better to eat the whole fruit rather than juice. Would she be happy with a snack of fresh fruit, if she wants something sweet? Or even flavored yogurt would be more balanced. I've noticed that elderly people often develop a sweet tooth. With behavioral changes, you may just have to observe what works best and what doesn't.
I have noticed that my mom, who just turned 88, relatively healthy, no real issues other than back and leg issues which she is receiving care for. Last week we had been to grocery store so she sat in the lobby of our apts talking to some residents. I moved the car and came inside and sat down nxt to her on my rollator. She gave me the strangest look and said who are you and why are you sitting there?? Thats not your chair. I laffed it off but then she repeated it and i told her mom are you ok? Im Elizabeth, your daughter. Dont think she believed me and the other ladies had nvr seen her like that. So yes im telling our Dr this week. But i have noticed she will buy sweets an tries to hide them from me. And shes gained 10-12 lbs the last few months so i will address that wth dr as well. I know what sugar does to me, type 2 diagnosis wth non alcoholic fatty liver disease. So i try very hard to eat right. I get a high like a person who drinks alcohol then i go to sleep. I sure was scared though when my mom didnt know who i was…..blessings to all the caregivers out there…..may you receive some peace today is my prayers for all. Liz
90% thinking it is the gluten in the honey bun. Do some research, it IS scientifically proven. It is going to take some digging to find it, look for How gluten impacts mental state in Alz.. im sorry I do not have the links and if anybody posted about this above already. I have not read the replies...best wishes
My Mother was having memory problems for years now....Mom always loved her sweets and if you bought her ice cream she could eat the whole carton in one day. Mom has been diagnosed with dementia and has white mass matter images in her brain. We started to realize that when Dad would buy her sweets the next day she was even more confused and forgetful and tired. This would last for a couple days and then it would happen again. Dad liked to treat Mom with treats of sweets. One time he mentioned to me how bad she was and Dad said he woke up in the morning and she was eating the ice cream out of the carton. And later that day she was very agitated and confused. It was then we realized it was the sugar in the ice cream. So then we decided no sweets for Mom. Dad then bought ice cream Byers that says No sugar. And then we started to see the same behavior. Dad said it is not the ice cream because it says no sugar. I had him look at the ingredients. No sugar was added but there was still 5 grams of sugar in 1/4 cup. I said Mom eats like half the carton in one day. He did not believe me but every time she ate the ice cream same thing happened. Finally Dad believed me since he is the one who has to live with her and deal with her. When I took Mom to the Dr she said oh no she is not diabetic so sugar would not have that effect on her. My advice everyone is different and Yes sugar effects my Mother in a bad way. I notice the difference when I talk to her and then I would ask Dad what did she eat today and sure enough it was something with sugar in it....He would say it was only a half of a donut. Well donuts have a lot of sugar in them. Sugar is evil on the brain and the body and is in so much of what we eat. Mom was put on Aricept and we ended up taking her off of it because it caused her more side effects than being helpful for her brain. It made her compulsive and it made her scratch herself to the point where she would bleed. Since she has been off of it she is less active and she is forgetful. But when she eats right and sleeps good she is much better is is not as bad. Dad is the caregiver at 91 yrs old and I wish he could get more help with Mom. If people would realize that just talking with her and sitting with her helps her feel good and not so lonely and that is good for the brain. One more thing to mentioned. A few times Mom was very aggressive and at one point it was so bad she was seeing bugs coming out of the mirrors. Dad had to remove the mirrors in the house and before that he hung up towels over them and she said they still are getting out and coming at her. It was so frightful to hear the fear in her voice and all Dad could do was say there are not bugs. In her mind there were. The Dr was going to put her on drugs for it and then I mentioned I read she could have a UTI? So the Dr said okay lets test her and sure enough she did have a UTI. It took a while for the bug fiasco to go away. Dad took out the mirror in her room and will not put it back up. Anytime she has been overly agitated and aggressive she had tested positive for a UTI. We give her cranberry capsules and since then she has not had a UTI since. Thank GOD. I hope that anyone reading this finds this helpful. It has been a long year and a half and I live long distance from my Mother and Father. I talk to Mom 3 - 4 x a day and have gotten to know her moods and what helps and what doesn't. She will be 87 in July and has good days and not so good days. It is sad when I hear her say she looks forward to dying because she is lonely. Advice to anyone reading this. Go visit. You cannot make them do anything but you can sit with them and make them laugh and laughter is the best medicine for anyone along with conversation. God bless ALL you caregivers . It is not easy and It is stressful and you all need support and answers and understanding.
My husband gave my mom, with Alzheimer's, a small dish of banana pudding, maybe just 2 teaspoonfuls, for a snack. Within an hour, she was bouncing off the walls. Eventually, she calmed down. We never gave her anything sugar-laden after that, and no other food seemed to have that effect on her, so we're assuming there was some connection, (although I couldn't say that for sure). I imagine everyone's body can react differently to food. I even wrote a book about taking care of her called, "My Mother Has Alzheimer's and My Dog has Tapeworms: A Caregiver's Tale." I tried to write it with humor and heart, since you need both when dealing with Alzheimer's.
No. In fact, the taste of sweets is the last taste sensation to go. Mom was never aggressive or violent. Mom suffered extremely bad stages of Alzheimer's--she eventually became practically brain dead in the end. In the end I had to put in a feeding tube because I did not want her to die of dehydration which is extremely slow and agonizing (despite what hospice says, it is NOT a humane way to die): It often takes about two weeks to die without fluids. I used the feeding tube as a last resort, and she never bothered with it and I never had a problem with it.
Ice cream with protein shakes were my best friend BEFORE mom had to have a feeding tube put in because that's all she ate. I gave her a multivitamin in the form of gummy bear, one a day. She ate that. Her labs were real good for a long time. If that's all she ate that's better than nothing! Despite this, and her insulin-dependent diabetes (IDDM), I kept her sugars under control. She managed to live to 90 years, 3 months--this includes her IDDM, 10 years of chronic kidney disease, and liver problems...all associated with her diabetes. You DO need to keep her teeth clean. The mouth bacteria can be a major source of pneumonia. That was very difficult in the end but I managed. Oral care is just as important even with a feeding tube.
Alzheimer's disease did NOT kill mom. Her years and years and years and years of being diabetic did. Mom also died with perfect skin, and I kept her on a bowel schedule every tuesdays, thursdays and Sundays like clockwork. Thanks to lactulose. Her needs were met, nutrition needs met, kept clean she never had to have any narcotics or psychotropics and she died very peacefully -- she was on hospice for two solid years. She felt loved and secure in her home and I took care of her every single moment.
At great cost--I sacrificed my life for her. She died when I was 59 years old...and caring for her all those years will impact me for the rest of my life not in a good way. At 59 I had to start over. That's very late in life and I no longer have my mom and left alone in the world. I'm still recovering from her loss.
I know some who will react to sugar overload. I don't believe it is the case for all. Always combine protein with sweet (milk is good). Try it later and if she has the same reaction - give her sweet treat with a meal.
I've never noticed that and Seniors seem to love Sweets because their taste Buds aren't what they use to be. What exactly did you see as being aggressive? Maybe she just has an extra spurt of energy like a Sugar Rush and you took it wrong. Rearly need more info as to what exactly happened. Was it that she just wasn't as compliant as before? You think maybe she just wanted her own way for a change?
My dad was 90, had AZ and cancer. He liked to eat most foods & loved anything sugary. Our hospice nurse told me Alzheimers was similar to diabetes of the brain. She recommended we limit his sugar intake after noon saying it might help him sleep better & not get as anxious & agitated later. We did that & Dad felt good about having his sweet treat, but was less revved up in the evenings. He still sundowned at times, but honestly, not as often. We would not be militant about his diet b/c as someone else mentioned, there become fewer & fewer simple pleasures our LO’s can enjoy, but it did seem to improve his demeanor & behavior to some extent w/o some kind of pill or medicine. Good luck- wishing you & your family only the best!!
It makes sense to me that it would cause aggression. Sugar is fuel for the brain. A person with a damaged brain does not know what to do with/how to channel all that energy. Think about what happens to kids on a sugar high - they bounce off the walls if they don't channel that energy in a healthy way.
You also say that it was a *large* honeybun. Cut back. Perhaps one large honeybun should be cut into quarters and be a snack for 4 days. But if cutting back on the sugar still makes your mother aggressive, you'll have to decide whether it's worth the treat.
My mom is a diabetic but when her blood sugar is high at night (due to sweets, starches, etc), it is impossible for her to go to sleep. Despite night meds, her brain can’t relax. I try to give her small amounts of sweets, starches, etc., early in the day. Too much sugar makes her bounce off the wall.
I do not know what foods do to people but I do know that no matter what is causing her behavior, it must be stopped. I would consult with the medical people and try to get to the bottom of this and perhaps get some medication. I would also affirm with her when this happens that you simply will not tolerate or allow this behavior - set boundaries - put her in her place with a warning and if it does not stop at once, walk away - and each time she does this, get up and walk away at once. No one should tolerate this - ever - for any reason.
Yes! Giving sugar to children hype them up so why not an older person? Also in the long run too much sugar in your blood keeps oxygen from entering the cells that's why diabetics often have to have toes and legs amputated because the oxygen can not get to the small blood vessels also in your eyes and it can cause blindness. Also keeps oxygen from small blood vessels in the brain thus dementia.
There are benefits and negatives for drinking cow's milk. If one is lactose intolerant, then they shouldn't drink it. For others, there are many benefits, as long as it is used within reason:
I'm no authority on this--but I DO remember that my Parkinson's pt could not have sugar within and hour of taking certain meds, and no proteins within an hour of others. I know that she was hard to control in the sugar area--friends would lovingly bring her huge boxes of candy and she'd hide them and then eat then whenever she felt like it. I think the result was she'd 'freeze up' more easily and have a hard time talking. Before I'd freak out thinking she was having some kind of seizure, I'd check her closet stash for candy. Yep, pretty much always a half eaten box of something yummy.
She was aware that it would happen and said "Life's too short to go without chocolate" and I agreed, but said to please watch the clock. After 1 hr she could eat what she wanted. :)
During Mother's final year, the residence home personnel would discourage everyone from bringing her candy. It tended to not be good for her digestion But they also believed it would cause her to have episodes of mild dementia. She was not diabetic; but excessive sweets did not help anything for her treatment. The hardest part was doing without the Starbucks mocha coffee and cream each morning with Dove chocolates.
I wrote my thesis on diet and dementia. Many longitudinal studies have been done on the diet and preventing ]=, slowing, and even reversing dementia but for some reason, this information remains widely unknown. Food does affect your brain, whether your brain is ill or not. Foods that cause inflammation - sugar, dairy, processed foods, Gluten - are not good for any brain Non inflammatory foods, - MCT oil, berries, greens, oily fish, etc are good for any brain
My dad is recovering slowwwwly from brain surgery last year and has Delerium still. He has many of the same symptoms as dementia but they are less and less as time goes on. In the afternoon he gets restless and as he is walking and stronger again it is troublesome. I make him a milkshake with nut milk, banana berries, walnuts and MCT oil powder. within 20 mins he is calm and happy and relaxing on the couch. It may not work for yours, but please try it... nothing to lose!!! At the very least , 1 tablespoon of MCT oil a day, can really help (it is like pure brain food)
Hypoglycemia-- in just about anyone with any kinda metabolism-- once the dextrose is ingested, digested, and used up-- the blood sugar level drops way below where it was originally-- if it was at zero, then below zero-- and it does not feel good at all to anyone. USE HONEY-- which is levulose--which does not drop the blood sugar below the original level. YES-- demented folks are more inclined to not hold back when expressing themselves... and in uninhibited. Citrus fruit is good too-- as in tangerine slices. Bananas and apples are great-- remember you have a captive audience now and also the opposite is true. Did you know alot of ALF nurses are forces to crush medications and mix it in with chocolate or butterscotch pudding cups...? Sugar-SUGAR ! Reminds me of how during WW2-- military nutrition was of a mind that a chocolate bar was just as go as a meal.
Imho, all food should be given to an elder in MODERATION. One time or two I bought a bear claw pastry from Panera Bread for my mother and she ate it in 3 sittings. There was no way that she could consume it all at once/in one sitting. As she aged, she could not consume large quantities. As far as sugar and aggression, that will depend of other health factors.
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https://medium.com/writers-guild/the-horrifying-effect-of-sugar-on-dementia-72753c8e041d
You might also want to read this article, even though it's an older one:
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/apr/20/stroke-and-dementia-risk-linked-to-low-sugar-drinks-study-finds
Some months ago I did research on contributing factors, including sugar, and decided to cut out sugar, and chocolate, as I suspected it was also affecting and delaying healing of a back injury I had sustained. I could see the change in a few days, and although I relapse occasionally, my consumption will never return to pre-injury levels.
I can also tell the effect when I relapse and have a cookie.
It makes sense to me, w/o finding supporting research, that sugar's affect on the human brain accelerates its activity, and with dementia in the picture, it could be heightened.
thank you so much for the hyperlinks. I will definitely read both articles. I really appreciate your response.
My DH is diabetic. He will drink a glass of milk thinking he is having a “healthy” snack then wonder why his blood sugar reading jumps up.
Great you made the connection.
Our elderly and those who are mentally challenge like sweets because its an instant gratification. Elderly tend to loose taste as they age but sugar they seem to still be able to taste. What do you want food that tastes blah because u can no longer taste or sugar you can.
Check meds to see if sugar interacts with them.
That said, do beware. It isn't just added sugar or candies/sweets. So many packaged food items today contain sugar, foods that don't even need sugar. Why? It's a cheap filler and it's also addictive. If possible, eliminate processed foods (boxed, canned, bottled) and make your own. The more natural the state of the food item, the better. Then if sugar is required in the recipe, YOU can control how much to use and when. Funny story - when my daughter was in middle school, she gave a chocolate chip cookie to the bus driver. The driver caught up with me and said she HAD to have my recipe! I told her to use the one on the back of the chocolate chip bag, but cut BOTH sugars in half. That was it!
Read ingredient labels of food items you buy - not just that white label they slapped on more recently, the ingredients. I was appalled years ago to see sugar in PB. The PB we ate as kids are what is now sold as "natural" PB. There's NO need for sugar in PB (should be peanuts and maybe some salt) or many other foods it is in now. Even worse, for those trying to cut calories to lose weight, beware those "fat-free" or "low-fat" items. In removing the fats, the taste is lost, so they add SUGAR! Might as well just slather it on your hips. My research and goal was to avoid cholesterol meds and though it took a while (the "experts" have become enlightened since then), one of the items to avoid was hydrogenated oil, partially or fully. This is used to extend "shelf life" of products. Avoid that if you can! That's also when I started reading ingredients. Even "healthy" items like granola bars are BAD.
I make my own pasta sauce, no sugar needed. Most of the foods I buy are plain frozen or fresh fruits and veggies, nothing added, and meat, though I don't eat a lot of that. I eliminated soda long ago, and the one time I had one later, it nearly gagged me. Any recipe that does call for sugar, I cut the amount down, usually half of what's listed. Oh, on the topic of soda - another item to ditch, esp diet sodas. If I need fizz, I drink sparkling water (carbonated) but always check ingredients for sugar or artificial sweetener and any other nasty ingredients. Read this:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/310909
Also, when reading the ingredients, know that they also try to "hide" the added sugar by calling it by other names. Check this site for some more info:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/finding-the-hidden-sugar-in-the-foods-you-eat
For the most part, food items naturally contain sugar, in varying amounts. This isn't the biggest concern, it is the added REFINED and modified sugars that likely cause the most problems. The body has to work to break down natural sugars in the food we eat. Refined sugar is already broken down, so again, slather it on your hips rather than ingesting it! Take the time to prepare your foods from scratch to eliminate these hidden dangers.
For OP or anyone else who might observe this change in behavior, about the best you can do is try trial and error (almost forgot - with any abrupt sudden change in behavior/demeanor, check for UTI or other infection.) Cut down sugary and hidden sugar items and monitor behavior for a few weeks. If no instances, perhaps try it one day and if it happens again, you'd have your answer.
im sorry I do not have the links and if anybody posted about this above already. I have not read the replies...best wishes
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/gluten/
Mom has been diagnosed with dementia and has white mass matter images in her brain.
We started to realize that when Dad would buy her sweets the next day she was even more confused and forgetful and tired. This would last for a couple days and then it would happen again. Dad liked to treat Mom with treats of sweets.
One time he mentioned to me how bad she was and Dad said he woke up in the morning and she was eating the ice cream out of the carton. And later that day she was very agitated and confused. It was then we realized it was the sugar in the ice cream. So then we decided no sweets for Mom.
Dad then bought ice cream Byers that says No sugar. And then we started to see the same behavior. Dad said it is not the ice cream because it says no sugar. I had him look at the ingredients. No sugar was added but there was still 5 grams of sugar in 1/4 cup. I said Mom eats like half the carton in one day. He did not believe me but every time she ate the ice cream same thing happened. Finally Dad believed me since he is the one who has to live with her and deal with her.
When I took Mom to the Dr she said oh no she is not diabetic so sugar would not have that effect on her. My advice everyone is different and Yes sugar effects my Mother in a bad way. I notice the difference when I talk to her and then I would ask Dad what did she eat today and sure enough it was something with sugar in it....He would say it was only a half of a donut. Well donuts have a lot of sugar in them. Sugar is evil on the brain and the body and is in so much of what we eat.
Mom was put on Aricept and we ended up taking her off of it because it caused her more side effects than being helpful for her brain. It made her compulsive and it made her scratch herself to the point where she would bleed. Since she has been off of it she is less active and she is forgetful. But when she eats right and sleeps good she is much better is is not as bad.
Dad is the caregiver at 91 yrs old and I wish he could get more help with Mom. If people would realize that just talking with her and sitting with her helps her feel good and not so lonely and that is good for the brain.
One more thing to mentioned. A few times Mom was very aggressive and at one point it was so bad she was seeing bugs coming out of the mirrors. Dad had to remove the mirrors in the house and before that he hung up towels over them and she said they still are getting out and coming at her. It was so frightful to hear the fear in her voice and all Dad could do was say there are not bugs. In her mind there were. The Dr was going to put her on drugs for it and then I mentioned I read she could have a UTI? So the Dr said okay lets test her and sure enough she did have a UTI. It took a while for the bug fiasco to go away. Dad took out the mirror in her room and will not put it back up. Anytime she has been overly agitated and aggressive she had tested positive for a UTI. We give her cranberry capsules and since then she has not had a UTI since. Thank GOD.
I hope that anyone reading this finds this helpful. It has been a long year and a half and I live long distance from my Mother and Father. I talk to Mom 3 - 4 x a day and have gotten to know her moods and what helps and what doesn't. She will be 87 in July and has good days and not so good days. It is sad when I hear her say she looks forward to dying because she is lonely. Advice to anyone reading this. Go visit. You cannot make them do anything but you can sit with them and make them laugh and laughter is the best medicine for anyone along with conversation.
God bless ALL you caregivers . It is not easy and It is stressful and you all need support and answers and understanding.
Ice cream with protein shakes were my best friend BEFORE mom had to have a feeding tube put in because that's all she ate. I gave her a multivitamin in the form of gummy bear, one a day. She ate that. Her labs were real good for a long time. If that's all she ate that's better than nothing! Despite this, and her insulin-dependent diabetes (IDDM), I kept her sugars under control. She managed to live to 90 years, 3 months--this includes her IDDM, 10 years of chronic kidney disease, and liver problems...all associated with her diabetes. You DO need to keep her teeth clean. The mouth bacteria can be a major source of pneumonia. That was very difficult in the end but I managed. Oral care is just as important even with a feeding tube.
Alzheimer's disease did NOT kill mom. Her years and years and years and years of being diabetic did. Mom also died with perfect skin, and I kept her on a bowel schedule every tuesdays, thursdays and Sundays like clockwork. Thanks to lactulose. Her needs were met, nutrition needs met, kept clean she never had to have any narcotics or psychotropics and she died very peacefully -- she was on hospice for two solid years. She felt loved and secure in her home and I took care of her every single moment.
At great cost--I sacrificed my life for her. She died when I was 59 years old...and caring for her all those years will impact me for the rest of my life not in a good way. At 59 I had to start over. That's very late in life and I no longer have my mom and left alone in the world. I'm still recovering from her loss.
What exactly did you see as being aggressive?
Maybe she just has an extra spurt of energy like a Sugar Rush and you took it wrong.
Rearly need more info as to what exactly happened.
Was it that she just wasn't as compliant as before? You think maybe she just wanted her own way for a change?
You also say that it was a *large* honeybun. Cut back. Perhaps one large honeybun should be cut into quarters and be a snack for 4 days. But if cutting back on the sugar still makes your mother aggressive, you'll have to decide whether it's worth the treat.
https://www.healthline.com/health/is-milk-bad-for-you#takeaway
She was aware that it would happen and said "Life's too short to go without chocolate" and I agreed, but said to please watch the clock. After 1 hr she could eat what she wanted. :)
not help anything for her treatment. The hardest part was doing without the Starbucks mocha coffee and cream each morning with Dove chocolates.
Food does affect your brain, whether your brain is ill or not.
Foods that cause inflammation - sugar, dairy, processed foods, Gluten - are not good for any brain
Non inflammatory foods, - MCT oil, berries, greens, oily fish, etc are good for any brain
My dad is recovering slowwwwly from brain surgery last year and has Delerium still. He has many of the same symptoms as dementia but they are less and less as time goes on.
In the afternoon he gets restless and as he is walking and stronger again it is troublesome. I make him a milkshake with nut milk, banana berries, walnuts and MCT oil powder. within 20 mins he is calm and happy and relaxing on the couch.
It may not work for yours, but please try it... nothing to lose!!!
At the very least , 1 tablespoon of MCT oil a day, can really help (it is like pure brain food)