My parents are spilling food more often at home... The cause might be a decline in fingertip dexterity | Measures and convenient goods you can start using today

Every time you visit your parents' home, do you feel anxious seeing them drop their chopsticks or spill more food while eating?

Hello, I am Maki, an occupational therapist.

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"Please be careful when you eat," or "Can't you look closely at what you're holding?"

Have you ever found yourself saying things like that? In fact, that spilling of food is not due to carelessness or laziness on their part, but is related to very natural changes occurring in the body with age.

From my position of having faced many elderly people and their families for 16 years in the field of home rehabilitation, I will explain the real reasons why chopsticks become difficult to use and how to devise ways to regain the "joy of eating by oneself" without hurting their feelings.

3 reasons you should know why chopsticks become difficult to use

Although we use chopsticks casually in our daily lives, they actually require the full use of our fingertips and brain, which is a fairly advanced movement. As we age, several things can easily put the brakes on this movement.

The first is a decline in the strength to move the fingertips precisely.

To move chopsticks, it is necessary to move the thumb, index finger, and middle finger separately and delicately.

However, as the small muscles in the fingers atrophy with age, it becomes difficult to move each finger as intended, which can cause chopsticks to cross or make it easier to drop food.

The second reason is a decline in the ability to maintain grip strength.

Holding chopsticks requires constant support, but as this strength weakens, the hand becomes tired toward the end of the meal, making it difficult to control the chopsticks.

The third reason is a misalignment between visual perception and hand movement.

Looking at where the food is, reaching out accurately, and picking it up. This sequence of movements requires fine coordination between the eyes and hands.

If this coordination is disrupted by changes in vision or slower physical reactions, the tips of the chopsticks may not reach the food properly, causing them to slide around the plate.

This can lead to spilling food.

The emotional burden caused by spilling food

When someone cannot use chopsticks well, they are often the ones who are most hurt by it.

"I don't want to be treated like an old person."

"I don't want my children to see me looking unseemly."

Because of this pride, when family members say, "You're spilling again," it can cause feelings of shame or frustration, making mealtime itself a painful experience.

As a result, they may start avoiding eating out or dining with family, or eating itself may become a chore, leading to a decrease in the amount of food they consume.

Meals are not just for nutrition; they are one of life's great pleasures.

Protecting this pleasure is a very important point for continuing to live a healthy and vibrant life.

Simple dining table adjustments you can start today

Here are some ways to make eating easier without hurting your parents' pride.

One way is to change the color of the plates.
When the plate and the food are similar in color, the outlines become blurred and hard to see.

By avoiding combinations like white tofu on a white plate and switching to colored dishes, the food becomes easier to locate, making it easier to aim with chopsticks.

Another way is to move your hands and fingers slightly before eating.

Just repeating a wide clench and release motion 10 times can improve blood circulation in the hands.

Furthermore, touching the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pinky to make a circle and then opening your hand wide, repeated 5 times on each side, provides gentle stimulation to the finger muscles that support chopsticks.

It is only about a minute of warm-up exercises, but it can make the subsequent meal go much more smoothly.

Summary: The option of using tools

While training the body itself is important, sometimes just changing tools or the environment slightly can allow someone to achieve success with their current abilities.

It is easy to think, "If chopsticks are difficult, just switch to a spoon," but in a Japanese dining setting, eating with chopsticks is deeply tied to a person's sense of pride.

Therefore, from the perspective of an occupational therapist, I highly recommend a tool called "Hashinosuke." These are chopsticks designed to allow even those with weakened fingertip strength to eat naturally and gracefully.

It is designed so that the tips of the chopsticks are naturally held in the correct position just by pinching them like tweezers, so even those who have difficulty moving their thumb and index finger independently can firmly grip side dishes with just enough force to lightly squeeze with their whole palm.

It doesn't look like a nursing care product, and its elegant design with the warmth of wood means that using it doesn't make one feel their age, leading to a sense of accomplishment from being able to eat cleanly with their own hands until the very end.

When the anxiety of 'I might spill' disappears, conversation during meals increases, and smiles naturally return to the family dining table.

Why not give a gift of such small improvements so that your parents can continue to enjoy the pleasure of eating?

Click here for more details about Hashinosuke

I live in Hiroshima with my wife, two daughters, and two female cats while working in home-visit rehabilitation. I am the only male in the house, so I live in a completely away game every day (laughs).

From the perspective of an active occupational therapist living with cats, I introduce 'easy-to-use and appreciated' convenient goods that are perfect as gifts for senior parents and grandparents, as well as recommended cat supplies and healing goods unique to a cat owner, on Rakuten ROOM.

For example, this 'Shoehorn Vela'.

The act of putting on shoes is actually quite a dangerous moment for the elderly. This is a type that stands on its own by clamping onto the heel of the shoe, so you can put them on without supporting it with your hand. It is an item I often recommend in the field, and I think it is just right as a gift.

Even if you don't purchase it, I think it's worth remembering as a convenient gadget, so please take a look.

🛒 Rakuten ROOM →

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