Adaptations to Cutlery Helps at Mealtimes

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Adaptations to Cutlery Helps at Mealtimes
For people with a tremor, reduced strength or
range of motion in the hands, using standard
cutlery may become difficult. Controlling it
accurately can be a challenge, making meal times
awkward. Fortunately there are certain sets of
knives and forks which have adaptations making
them easier to control. Specialist knives, forks
and Caring Cutlery
Conventional metal cutlery tends to be quite
narrow. It requires the user to have a precise
grip. For people with arthritis in the hands and
fingers, this can be painful. Cutlery featuring a
wider handle can dramatically improve this.
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By spreading the weight more evenly through the
hand, built-up handled cutlery improves
control. People tend to find larger items do not
require such a tight grip, which can lead to
increased tremors. Another method of expanding
the girth of cutlery handles is by using foam
tubing. This is available in different
thicknesses and fits to standard cutlery.
Wrapping cutlery with certain types of thick
tape has a similar affect if used correctly. Some
special knives and forks like Caring Cutlery,
have features which further assist user control.
Items in this range have a contoured design which
fits snugly in the hand. Its shape also features
an indentation on the top, enabling firm
positioning of the index finger. This greatly
improves control and reduces the impact of
tremors. Other adapted implements, similar to
Caring Cutlery, have similar oversized handles.
Some come with the additional benefit of
directional heads. This means the head of the
spoon or fork can be set at an angle to suit the
user. If you have a limited range of motion, you
may find it difficult to direct conventional
spoons and forks into your mouth. The
possibility of angling the heads to make the
process easier may help.
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Using a sock aid or long-handled shoe-horn
As people in their 40s and 50s know only too
well, ones flexibility can rapidly diminish.
Just reaching down to your feet can be a
struggle after a certain age. Where once you
might have been able to touch your toes, now you
can barely reach your shins! Whether it is due
to back problems joint stiffness, it causes
practical problems when getting dressed. The
knock-on impact of this is difficulty in putting
on shoes and socks. The act of stretching down
and pulling upwards, the action required to
pull-on socks, can be hard. There are pieces of
equipment available which help with just this
kind of problem.
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One popular tool for putting on socks uses a
plastic channel. This device comes with two
chords attached to one end. The open sock fits
over the opposite end of the channel to the
chord fixings. Holding a chord in each hand, the
user lowers the channel to the floor. The foot
then slides into the channel with the opening of
the sock at the far end. Holding the chords in
either hand, the channel, along with the
attached sock, pulls up towards the user. This
in turn brings the sock over the foot and up the
ankle. As the sock pulls upwards, the plastic
channel of the sock aid naturally runs out of
room and disconnects with it. This completes the
process. While these steps are quite difficult to
explain on paper, most people get the hang of it
with practice. The idea is that one can put on
the sock without having to reach ones
feet. Long-handled shoe-horns are available which
assist putting on shoes. Elastic laces might
also help. Using these means you dont have to
repeatedly tie and untie your shoes when you put
them on or off.
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Reaching aids
Another useful living aid for people with reduced
flexibility is a reacher. These devices,
sometimes known as grabbers or reaching aids,
enable the use to reach things which would
otherwise be out of their grasp. This can be of
great assistance when getting dressed. Reaching
down to pull up trousers from ground level is
one such practical use.
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