The Meal of the Person with Dysphagia

Meals occupy an important time in the daily life of people, and as observed, they have a number of meanings that continue to retain their value when swallowing is difficult. For a dysphagic patient, eating is not less important than for a person without swallowing difficulties, and this is also true for subjects who are non-orally fed (Box 5.1). In these cases, even if there is no nutritional need, the patient wants to eat, not out of hunger but for the pleasure of eating. This desire is even increased in patients subjected to dietary restrictions to the point that, sometimes, they engage in extremely dangerous behaviors such as eating in secret, usually hastily and in unusual postures. Here we analyze the conditions required to ensure the safety of the meal of dysphagic patients and explore the possibility of palliative feeding, that is, a type of feeding devoid of nutritional meaning, with the sole purpose of satisfying the non-nutritional aspects of food. Too often dysphagic patients report consuming their meals in solitude, due to the discomfort or shame of having to cough or spit during swallowing or having to assume “strange” positions.