Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom
Eating and drinking difficulties, such as loss of appetite and swallowing problems, are common in dementia, but little is known about the experiences of ethnic minority groups who are managing these difficulties at home. The purpose of our study was to explore the meaning of food, the impact of deme...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Nutrients |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/12/2395 |
| _version_ | 1797483645857955840 |
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| author | Pushpa Nair Yolanda Barrado-Martín Kanthee Anantapong Kirsten Moore Christina Smith Elizabeth Sampson Jill Manthorpe Kate Walters Nathan Davies |
| author_facet | Pushpa Nair Yolanda Barrado-Martín Kanthee Anantapong Kirsten Moore Christina Smith Elizabeth Sampson Jill Manthorpe Kate Walters Nathan Davies |
| author_sort | Pushpa Nair |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Eating and drinking difficulties, such as loss of appetite and swallowing problems, are common in dementia, but little is known about the experiences of ethnic minority groups who are managing these difficulties at home. The purpose of our study was to explore the meaning of food, the impact of dementia on eating and drinking, and carers’ experiences of support. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 17 carers and people with dementia from ethnic minority backgrounds living in England, using thematic analysis to analyse the data. Food/drink had strong links to identity, culture and emotions. Providing culturally familiar foods, celebrating traditional festivals and supporting previous food-related roles promoted reminiscence, which encouraged the people living with dementia to eat and drink, as did social interactions, although these could lead to distress in those with more advanced dementia. Food choices were also influenced by carer strain, generational differences and the impact of health conditions. Despite a strong sense of duty to care for relatives at home, there was low awareness of community support services. The carers expressed a need for culturally tailored support for managing dementia-related eating and drinking difficulties at home. Healthcare professionals must provide contextually relevant advice to carers, being mindful of how cultural backgrounds can affect dietary choices. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:51:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-16800bbbbed4460b8c998deede46102f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:51:00Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nutrients |
| spelling | doaj.art-16800bbbbed4460b8c998deede46102f2023-11-23T18:20:18ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432022-06-011412239510.3390/nu14122395Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United KingdomPushpa Nair0Yolanda Barrado-Martín1Kanthee Anantapong2Kirsten Moore3Christina Smith4Elizabeth Sampson5Jill Manthorpe6Kate Walters7Nathan Davies8Research Department of Primary Care and Population Health, University College London (Medical School), Upper Third Floor, Royal Free Hospital, Rowland Hill Street, London NW3 2PF, UKResearch Department of Primary Care and Population Health, University College London (Medical School), Upper Third Floor, Royal Free Hospital, Rowland Hill Street, London NW3 2PF, UKMarie Curie Palliative Care Research Department, Division of Psychiatry, University College London, 6th Floor, Wing A, Maple House, 149 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 7NF, UKMarie Curie Palliative Care Research Department, Division of Psychiatry, University College London, 6th Floor, Wing A, Maple House, 149 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 7NF, UKLanguage and Cognition, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, Chandler House, 2 Wakefield Street, London WC1N 1PF, UKMarie Curie Palliative Care Research Department, Division of Psychiatry, University College London, 6th Floor, Wing A, Maple House, 149 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 7NF, UKNIHR Policy Research Unit in Health & Social Care Workforce and NIHR Applied Research Collaborative (ARC) South London, King’s College London, Strand, London WC2 4LL, UKResearch Department of Primary Care and Population Health, University College London (Medical School), Upper Third Floor, Royal Free Hospital, Rowland Hill Street, London NW3 2PF, UKResearch Department of Primary Care and Population Health, University College London (Medical School), Upper Third Floor, Royal Free Hospital, Rowland Hill Street, London NW3 2PF, UKEating and drinking difficulties, such as loss of appetite and swallowing problems, are common in dementia, but little is known about the experiences of ethnic minority groups who are managing these difficulties at home. The purpose of our study was to explore the meaning of food, the impact of dementia on eating and drinking, and carers’ experiences of support. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 17 carers and people with dementia from ethnic minority backgrounds living in England, using thematic analysis to analyse the data. Food/drink had strong links to identity, culture and emotions. Providing culturally familiar foods, celebrating traditional festivals and supporting previous food-related roles promoted reminiscence, which encouraged the people living with dementia to eat and drink, as did social interactions, although these could lead to distress in those with more advanced dementia. Food choices were also influenced by carer strain, generational differences and the impact of health conditions. Despite a strong sense of duty to care for relatives at home, there was low awareness of community support services. The carers expressed a need for culturally tailored support for managing dementia-related eating and drinking difficulties at home. Healthcare professionals must provide contextually relevant advice to carers, being mindful of how cultural backgrounds can affect dietary choices.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/12/2395nutritionhydrationdementiaeatingdrinkingfood |
| spellingShingle | Pushpa Nair Yolanda Barrado-Martín Kanthee Anantapong Kirsten Moore Christina Smith Elizabeth Sampson Jill Manthorpe Kate Walters Nathan Davies Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom Nutrients nutrition hydration dementia eating drinking food |
| title | Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom |
| title_full | Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom |
| title_fullStr | Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom |
| title_full_unstemmed | Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom |
| title_short | Experiences of Carers and People with Dementia from Ethnic Minority Groups Managing Eating and Drinking at Home in the United Kingdom |
| title_sort | experiences of carers and people with dementia from ethnic minority groups managing eating and drinking at home in the united kingdom |
| topic | nutrition hydration dementia eating drinking food |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/12/2395 |
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