Make Meal Times Easier with These Helpful Living Aids

Meal times should be an opportunity to sit and savour the meal, but for many people it can be a difficult experience. For those who have conditions that affect their grip and dexterity – such as arthritis, stroke, or Parkinson’s – using ordinary cutlery and crockery can be frustrating and stressful. To offer extra assistance CareCo provide a number of living aids to help during meal times. Here are just a few:

Easy to Use Cutlery for Meal Times

CareCo Arthritis Friendly Cutlery Set

If you have weakness or pain in your grip ordinary slender cutlery can be very difficult to hold. Simple actions like cutting or scooping up food are a trying experience. The CareCo Arthritis Friendly Cutlery Set helps reduce that difficulty significantly thanks to its ergonomic design. All three of the knife, fork, and spoon have been formed to be easier to use for those with grip difficulties. The handles are chunkier than normal, so they don’t require such firmness of grip, and their shape contours comfortably in your hand, so you don’t need to awkwardly adjust your grip to keep hold.

Helpful Tableware for Meal Times

ServSafe

If you have one hand that works well but the other doesn’t – perhaps due to stroke – then using a knife and fork is not easy. Only being able to use one utensil at a time means scooping up food is the most difficult motion during meal times. However, the ServSafe manages to transform an ordinary plate to help you. The device attaches around the edge of half the plate – with a diameter of 7.5”-10“ – and sits perpendicular to the surface. This provides a curved wall to push food up against without needing a second utensil. It’s also handy to take with you for meal times away from home.

Dignity Bowl & Plate Combo

The Dignity Bowl and Plate Combo has similar attributes to the ServSafe, but with some key differences. The first is that they’re not just an attachment but a complete product. This means that you don’t have to fiddle with attaching a curved edged to an existing plate. Additionally, having a bowel with a curved edge helps you enjoy liquid meals with less risk of spillage. The final major feature of the Dignity Bowel and Plate Combo is the suction cup on their base. This prevents them from sliding around during meal times as you push food against the edge.

A Kitchen Accessory for Extra Assistance

Ring Pull Can Opener

Meal times don’t just include what you do at the table, it also involves the meal prep. One of the most commonly encountered difficulties during prep is opening a tin can. One device that can help with this is the Ring Pull Can Opener. For tin cans with a ring tab, getting your fingers underneath the tab can be fiddly and even a bit painful, especially with arthritis or other grip issues. This opener is shaped to be wedged underneath the ring tab and can be used as a lever to release the top, using far less effort that you would with just your hands. These are just a few of the mobility aids from our kitchen aids shop .