One of the advantages of making blended meals for your g-tube fed child/family member, is the ability to add nutrients of your own choosing. Here is a tiny bit of information I’ve found about one aspect of value to each of the following herbs/spices:
- cool cayenne is thought to enhance vascular health.
- Parsley is thought to aid digestion.
- Oregano and dill are both effective in preventing bacteria overgrowth, keeping the digestive system in balance, according to what I read.
- Flax seed is high in Omega-3 and is shown to have many other benefits.
There is a lot of scientific research on herbs that can help you make choices. I’m working on a free download I’ll add to the site with what I’ve discovered about specific herbs.
Two other benefits are breath and taste:
- When her food for the day includes a bunch of dill, I can smell dill on my daughter’s breath!
- Taste is a function of both tongue and nose. As they smell different foods on their breath, they may acquire a taste for those foods.
If we only feed our children “formula” then they do not have the experience of “tasting” other foods. I am always working toward the goal of increasing En’s oral food consumption. Any gains are positive, regardless of how long it might take.
Pedaling Backwards 