Fostering the Enjoyment of Eating through Inclusive Strategies for People Living with Dementia

In this perspective, Atlantic Fellow Macarena Espina Díaz and Jenan Mohammad Jiménez share how they developed and adapted a toolkit to help people living with dementia and their caregivers during mealtimes.

In 2024, the Transdisciplinary Network on Aging of the University of Chile launched a toolkit in Spanish: Strategies to Facilitate Eating and Swallowing in People Living with Early-Stage Dementia. After a year of careful adaptations, this resource is now also available in English. As project lead, Jenan brought experience as an academic and speech-language pathologist, while Macarena supported the academic work and designed the materials.

This toolkit was created to respond to the daily challenges that people living with dementia and their caregivers face during mealtimes. Eating and swallowing can become difficult, stressful, or even isolating, but they can also be moments of joy and connection. Our aim was to develop a resource that is simple, practical, and accessible— something that caregivers can use in daily life.

To build the toolkit, we followed several steps. First, we reviewed research and best practices from the field. Then, we held conversations and workshops with academics, health professionals, and caregivers of people living with dementia. Their insights shaped the strategies we included. Finally, we worked with designers and illustrators to make the toolkit engaging and easy to understand.

The toolkit is structured around three guiding principles:

1. Eating as a meaningful activity – More than just meeting a biological need, eating can be a source of pleasure, comfort, and belonging. Sharing food connects people socially, emotionally, and culturally.
2. Communication is central – Understanding and validating the preferences of people living with dementia requires patience and clear communication.
3. Know the warning signs – Caregivers should be able to recognize situations where professional health support is needed.

With these principles in mind, the toolkit is organized into seven key areas related directly or indirectly to eating: 

• Cognitive Communication Skills
• Nutrition
• Swallowing and Dysphagia
• Meal Duration and Efficiency
• Environment for Eating
• Utensils, Furniture, and Support Objects for Eating
• Eating Routines

Each area presents a set of concrete, practical strategies for daily use, accompanied by illustrations to make the content more accessible. The toolkit also includes three appendices: foods that promote a Mediterranean diet; foods difficult to swallow for a person living with dementia and dysphagia; and modifications to foods, which present alternatives that can make meals safer and more enjoyable.

What makes this toolkit unique is its combination of practical content, inclusive design, and culturally relevant illustrations. It is the first resource of its kind tailored to the Chilean and Latin American population. And today, through the translation into English and adaptation of certain content, we hope that this toolkit will support caregivers, families, and communities around the world—helping to make mealtimes safer, more inclusive, and more enjoyable for people living with dementia.

The toolkit is available here in English and Spanish.