The elderly are at increased risk for poor dentition, dysphagia, and other problems impacting chewing. Soft foods can help.
This article will give you soft food ideas to feed your elderly loved ones who are struggling with dental issues.
*This article contains affiliate links. I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Common Oral Problems
The geriatric population is more susceptible to oral health problems with age (1).
- Tooth loss
- Periodontal disease
- Xerostomia: dry mouth
- Dental caries
- Oral infections
- Ill fitting dentures
These conditions can lead to poor diet quality, declined nutritional intake, swallowing difficulty, frailty, malnutrition, and poor quality of life.
Soft Foods for the Elderly
Seniors tend to limit their nutritional intake when dental issues are present. They may even eliminate entire food groups.
Offering and encouraging soft foods can help maintain adequate nutrition. Here are 39 examples:
- Chicken and dumplings
- Soups
- Meatloaf
- Quiche
- Omelet
- Egg salad
- Hot cereal
- Pancakes with syrup
- Sloppy joe
- Tofu
- Flakey fish
- Grilled cheese
- Chicken salad sandwich
- Scrambled eggs
- Sausage patty
- Salisbury steak
- Mashed potatoes
- Shepherd’s pie
- Spaghetti with meat sauce
- Well cooked vegetables
- Chili
- Meatballs
- Stuffed cabbage
- Goulash
- Tuna salad
- Lasagna
- Stuffed shells
- Canned vegetables
- Bananas
- Canned fruits
- Yogurt
- Cottage cheese
- Sweet potatoes, mashed or baked
- Chicken pot pie
- Stuffing
- Pudding
- Stuffed peppers
- Macaroni and cheese
- Biscuit with sausage gravy
Texture Modified Diets
In some cases, especially when dysphagia is involved, altering the texture of foods may be necessary.
Grinding or pureeing difficult to chew and swallow foods helps incorporate more variety into the diet. Learn more at Dysphagia Diet: The Basics.
Get my favorite blender and food processor bundle from Amazon.
*This article contains affiliate links. I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Practical Takeaways
While prevention is ideal, oral issues are common in the elderly. Chewing ability can be greatly impacted leading to reduced nutrition and quality of life.
Use these 39 soft food ideas to incorporate a wider variety of food choices into your loved ones diet. This can help prevent malnutrition, frailty, and improve quality of life.
Snacking can help to meet nutritional needs, by encouraging smaller more frequent foods. Get 39 soft snack ideas here.
I am the independent publisher of the Essential Puree Library, a library of books for seniors with swallowing disorders or dysphagia, a neurological condition that comes about as the result of aging.
I am an award-winning author and scholar.
I became my mother’s primary caregiver when she developed the condition. With the encouragement of her primary physician and the head dietitian at the hospital where she stayed when she had a bout of bacterial pneumonia, I wrote the Essential Puree Guidebook and a library of 10 award-winning books, including Purees of the Seasons. Please see the Bookstore on the Essential Puree website, essentialpuree.com
My goal was to surpass the available books, most of which were clinical and dreary, to marry the art of fine food with the science of puree. With the aging of the baby boom generation, a contemporary approach is needed. My object was patient and caregiver education and also providing tools for health care providers to support their patients when they are diagnosed or for maintenance.
My guidebook begins with practical advice, how to set up a puree kitchen and pantry in the home. I wanted to call your attention to my work and hope that you might take a look and perhaps post a recipe.
I have an Instagram site, @essentialpuree for recipes and techniques. I have a YouTube site for cooking videos, Essential Dysphagia Kitchen.
I do this work in memory of my mother, the late great Cathie G, that what I created for her maybe a benefit to others.
Lori, great list of soft foods to post on the refrigerator to be used when going to the grocery store! Thank you!