Many household tasks can be broken up into simple, step-by-step instructions. Cooking is a favourite activity in many day hospitals and day centres because it is not too complex, does not involve much walking around, and people often have a feeling of satisfaction when they can see what they have achieved, and also eat it. It must be remembered, however, that we often make conceptual jumps in our own minds when we perform such tasks. A simple instruction such as 'add two tablespoons of sugar to the mixture' will often be insufficient for people with dementia. The time will come when they may also have to be told where the sugar is, which spoon to use, and to be reminded what the word 'two' means. For this reason it is important to concentrate on the simplest of recipes. Those that don't take long to cook are the best as they may be ready to come out of the oven or off the stove as part of a continuous process that sufferers can relate to what has gone before; for they may not remember that a cake that has been taken out of the oven has anything to do with their having put the ingredients together two hours earlier.
Many other household activities can also be broken down into simple steps, such that a spouse or other carer can supervise at the same time as doing something else.
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General Health