Ensure

Hondo said:

Ensure
Linda is he losing weight and if so how much; the importance thing is that he is getting enough food or ensure to maintain his weight. Also that he is keeping hydrated by drinking plenty liquids. I will agree that 4 months is a little long but everyone is different in how fast they heal. Keep encouraging him to eat regular food but don’t try and force it on him, also might try and contact his doctor and see what he has to say.

Wishing you the best
Hondo

In my case so long ago, I
In my case so long ago, I not only did not like to eat, but I also did not like to look at food. I just survived on Ensure, but had swapped to Boost because it had a better taste. Then slowly, food became more appetizing.

Like Hondo said, you may want to contact his doctor for guidance. I think I was back to regular food about four months after treatment. By regular food, I meant I started eating but limited because of the saliva problem.

HAWVET said:

In my case so long ago, I
In my case so long ago, I not only did not like to eat, but I also did not like to look at food. I just survived on Ensure, but had swapped to Boost because it had a better taste. Then slowly, food became more appetizing.

Like Hondo said, you may want to contact his doctor for guidance. I think I was back to regular food about four months after treatment. By regular food, I meant I started eating but limited because of the saliva problem.

Well, I went nine months
Well, I went nine months with out any food by mouth and only was on tube feedings of nutren. My tongue and mouth were very bad and took forever to heal. I ended treatment on 5/15/09.

For some folks, years
The Nestle site is full of letters from folks who have kids with severe allergies and have lived solely on Boost Plus.

If it's the 320-calorie stuff, he should be drinking 6 of them (more, if it's not the high-calorie stuff) to get enough calories in.

It might be time to talk to the nutritionist as well as the doctor; it would be best to get an informed opinion from someone who is looking at him and his test results.

DrMary said:

For some folks, years
The Nestle site is full of letters from folks who have kids with severe allergies and have lived solely on Boost Plus.

If it's the 320-calorie stuff, he should be drinking 6 of them (more, if it's not the high-calorie stuff) to get enough calories in.

It might be time to talk to the nutritionist as well as the doctor; it would be best to get an informed opinion from someone who is looking at him and his test results.

Won't let me edit my comment:
Was wondering, why isn't he eating? Is it because it's too painful? Afraid of choking? Has a stricture? Do you mean he's not eating any food or not eating 'solids'. Took me a very, very long time to eat solids. Can he drink smoothies, eat puréed soups, and eat soft things like bananas or oatmeal? You don't really go into detail, so idk what the issue is. I know some people tried to kind of force me to eat in the begining, til I opened up my mouth and showed them the inside. That quelled that. Then when I realized I couldn't swallow, before I found out I had radiation damage, people were trying to tell me it was just in my head, and I should just relax... Yeah, ok. Lol

So I guess what I am getting at is that it's important to find out the 'why' he's not eating. Strictures can be dialted, or he can work with a speech pathologist for swallowing exercises, or maybe you guys may need to approach food differently, at least for a while anyway. I had to totally change the way I ate. Everything from temperature, texture, amount, and the time it takes me to eat. I can't eat the way I used to. If you need tips for prepping food, I'd be happy to help.

Wishing you both well,

Sweets

I went about 7 months .

I went about 7 months . Initially I was drinking Ensure and I slowly changed that to the higher protein lower calorie version... Uh... Glucerna . Oh how quickly we forget.

 

One of the appealing things was that I could make meal times very short. I didn't have any fun chewing or swallowing so chugging ensure or glucerna was just easier.  It was also easier to ignore the fact that my sense of taste was completely wrong.

 

As others have said you have to consult your doctor particularly if there's a lot of weight loss. I was drinking about 2100 calories of Ensure or glucerna every day.