Dysphagia is one of those diagnoses where if you don’t yourself experience problems chewing or swallowing, then you may well never have heard of it, but once you are given the diagnosis, you will be compelled to find out all you possibly can about it.
With that in mind, continue reading for some valuable help and advice having been diagnosed with dysphagia.
Causes Of Dysphagia
There is a wide plethora of root causes which display the signs and symptoms of dysphagia, which include but are in no way limited to:
- Lower level of emotional health and wellbeing
- MS (Multiple Sclerosis)
- Stroke
- Damage to the nervous system
- Head injury
- Dementia
- Psychological problems leading to a loss of appetite
The 5 Main Types Of Dysphagia
Essentially, there are five main types of dysphagia which are so-called because of the location of the cause; transport or esophageal dysphagia, extrinsic dysphagia, esophagogastric dysphagia, oropharyngeal dysphagia and paraoesophageal dysphagia.
Extrinsic dysphagia can be caused by adjacent tumors or muscular abnormalities, transport dysphagia is usually due to a piece of food stuck in some part of the digestive tract and passage of matter that is for some reason impaired is the main cause of esophagogastric dysphagia.
Various Treatments For Dysphagia
Fortunately, there is a wide plethora of treatment options available to a person who has been diagnosed with dysphagia.
There are certain specific medical surgical procedures that can also be an option, but other avenues of treatment are always pursued first by medical professionals.
Food Thickening Agents
By far one of the best treatments you should try as soon as you can after the diagnosis of dysphagia is to invest in a quality yet extremely affordable food thickening agent, such as Simply Thick LLC Instagram, which will make food easier to both chew and swallow.
Such food thickening agents work by slowing both the chewing process in the mouth and then subsequently slow down the progress of both different fluids and different foodstuffs from the mouth to allow a substantially longer amount of time to swallow.
Swallowing Therapy
Another proven to be effective way of managing the chewing and swallowing process to make food easier to consume is to arrange a session with a professional and qualified therapist who is well versed and experienced in providing swallowing exercises and therapy to patients.
Alternatively, there is a myriad of effective swallowing exercises that are simple to follow and freely available on the internet for you to download and try, with hopefully at least one exercise making a positive difference.
Changes To Your Diet
Naturally, when it comes to problems with swallowing and chewing, it is logical to look at the types of food you are eating to see whether or not there can be changes made to make the consumption smoother and easier.
Such foods that are recommended to people with dysphagia include:
- Mousses
- Scrambled eggs
- Gravy on meals
- Sauces on meals
- More watery foodstuffs
- Cottage cheese
- Smooth peanut butter
- Mashed vegetables
- Pureed fruits
