MODULE 1: METHODOLOGY AND TOOLS DEVELOPMENT FOR ADULT EDUCATORS

The following foods are especially dangerous for patients with dysphagia:

1) Foods that do not soften even when cooked

Ham, mushrooms, shellfish, etc. If cooked and finely chopped, they break up and do not hold together well in the mouth.

2) Hard foods

Nuts, sesame, dried shrimp, etc. These ingredients themselves are hard and simply break up when chewed and in consequence, are easily aspirated.

3) Thin foods

Foods that are shaped like thin sheets are prone to stick to the soft palate.

Thin foods are also difficult to perceive in the mouth.

4) Slippery

Pasta, peas, seafood, pulses

5) High-fiber foods

Bamboo shoots, root vegetables, green vegetables, fish dishes, and other foods that are high in fiber cannot easily be bitten into pieces, and are prone to remain in the mouth.

6) Dry foods

Bread, steamed potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and other foods with a low water content become more viscous and harder when mixed with saliva.

7) Sour foods

Vinegar is inherently easy to choke on. Citrus fruits and other sour foods are also prone to cause choking.

8) Foods consisting of small pieces that do not hold together well

Minced meat cooked to dryness does not hold together in the mouth and is easily retained in the pharynx.

9) Foods that melt or release liquid in mouth

Gelatin, some fruits (watermelon, melon, orange….), icecream…

10) Foods with small seeds, skin or bones

Kiwi, strawberries, peas, fish with bones…

11) Adhesive foodstuffs

Food that adheres to the palate such as honey, condensed milk, candies…

12) Foods consisting of two phases or two different textural properties

Chunky soups, rice porridge, milk with cereals,… may cause choking

13) Thin liquids

Thin liquids may cause aspiration