People living with motor neurone disease (MND) have been given guidance on how to make the most of meal times, during a cooking masterclass at Northampton College.
For the 5,000 people with MND across the UK, problems with swallowing may make eating and drinking difficult, leading to weight loss and further health problems.
To help make eating and drinking easier, the MND Association is developing a cook book full of recipe ideas and preparation tips to use in the kitchen.
A kitchen masterclass was staged at Northampton College, with a professional dietitian and speech and language therapist on hand to discuss the ideas with three people living with MND and their partners. The experience of the workshop including photographs taken on the day will help shape and illustrate the guide.
Kaye Stevens, care information manager at the MND Association, based in Northampton, said: We aim to create a friendly, accessible cook book that will help people with MND think about how to prepare easy-swallow meals.
Trouble swallowing or a lack of dexterity with the disease can make eating and drinking very difficult and people may lose weight.
We want to share valuable hints and tips on how to fortify food and simplify preparation to make it more practical for families. Northampton College has been very kind in enabling the event by offering their kitchens as a venue. This type of collaboration can make such a difference.
Dietitian Dimple Thakrar, who has more than 20 years' experience in nutrition for neurological conditions, shared simple techniques through a recipe that anyone can cook at home, while speech and language therapist Nina Squires suggested further ways to make food and drink easy to swallow.
James Whybrow, assistant principal at Northampton College, said: It was a huge honour to stage this event and do our bit to help make quality of life that little bit better, for people with or affected by MND.
The work being done in this guide to help families continue to enjoy good quality fresh food together is extremely valuable.
The new eating and drinking guide will be available to families affected by MND early next year. To find out more about the work of the MND Association please visit www.mndassociation.org
