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"Finger Food"

8 February 2024

Older adults suffering from dementia may start having trouble eating food with cutlery independently because of various motor difficulties (such as: difficulty holding a fork and knife) or difficulty recognising or using utensils).

Examples for food that can be eaten by hand: hardboiled egg, sliced sandwiches, vegetables, fruit slices, cake slices or cookies, all types of meatballs, fish fingers, and vegetable fritters (latkes).

Preparing small portions of food that can be eaten by hand enables eating effortlessly and helps promote a sense of independence and control at mealtimes.

People suffering from dementia sometimes struggle to eat with a fork and knife independently. There are several reasons to this:

  • Motor difficulties: difficulties such as hand tremors or difficulty holding a knife.
  • Cognitive difficulties – amnesia: people with dementia suffer from amnesia, and as part of this they forget the function of cutlery, such as a spoon and knife.

In such situations, it is important to prepare small portions to be eaten by hand, “finger food”, to help older people suffering from dementia promote their independence and their sense of control at mealtimes.

What is “finger food”

Finger food is any food portion that can be eaten with the fingers and hands.

  • Portions of finger food can be a full meal or part of it.
  • You can choose finger food for any meal of the day (breakfast, lunch, or dinner).
  • You can enjoy finger food as a snack in between meals.
  • It is important to adjust the food to the personal preferences of the older adult and their chewing abilities.

An example for a daily menu composed of portions of finger food:

  • Hard-boiled egg.
  • Stuffed egg, for example: with avocado, tahini, or mayonnaise.
  • An omelet cut into pieces.
  • Sandwiches sliced into small pieces. Sandwiches can be filled with avocado, tahini, hummus, peanut butter, mayonnaise, butter, soft white cheese, melted cheese, yellow cheese, sardines or tuna in oil, omelet, egg salad, halva, matbucha (cooked tomato salad), Turkish salad, or any spread you like).
  • Fresh, sliced vegetables, such as: tomato, cucumber, peppers in different colors, radish, turnip cabbage, carrot.
  • Beverages.

  • Seasonal fruits sliced in different colors, such as: apple, watermelon, melon, peach, orange, banana, strawberries, apricot, and more.

  • Cooked or bakes potatoes, cut into small pieces.
  • Wide noodles eaten with the fingers, in thick gravy.
  • Cooked vegetables to taste, such as: pieces of courgette, carrot, squash, sweet potato, green and yellow beans, fava beans, peas.
  • Fried or baked fish fingers, pieces of chicken, sliced schnitzel.
  • Any type of meatballs, such as: vegetarian meatballs like leek or cauliflower, meatballs in the shape of balls, such as beef, chicken, or turkey meatballs.
  • Meat or vegetarian Kibbeh.
  • A small chicken drumstick.
  • Latkes (baked or fried) made of legume or vegetables.
  • Beverages.

  • Sliced sandwiches.
  • Whole or sliced fruits.
  • A slice of cake or cookies.

Similar to breakfast. You can vary and add food types, such as:

  • Cubes or slices of yellow cheese.
  • Baked and sliced quiche. You can bake the quiche in a muffin pan and serve as muffins.
  • Pizza slices, sliced pancakes, or blintzes.
  • Stuffed vine leaves.
  • Sardines or mackerel fish, whole and oil-drained.
  • Beverages.

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