Meals and Drinks to Keep away from if You Have Myasthenia Gravis

Dry, Crumbly Meals

The method of consuming requires a refrain of muscle tissue all working collectively to govern meals within the mouth, chew, push it into the again of the throat, and swallow.

One vital instrument on this gastro symphony is a flap of cartilage in the back of the throat known as the epiglottis, which acts as a lid to stop meals and liquid from getting into the lungs. If the epiglottis fails to utterly cowl the windpipe due to weakened muscle tissue, liquids and meals can enter the trachea, inflicting coughing.

Dry, crumbly meals like crackers, toast, and flaky pastries are widespread “aspiration triggers” for folks with myasthenia gravis, as a result of small, free particles can scatter whereas chewing, getting into the airway earlier than the epiglottis closes or slipping right into a poorly closed epiglottis.

“Softer, moist meals are usually simpler and safer,” Dr. Gonzalez says.

Should you do select to eat dry, crumbly meals, “maintain a glass of water at hand and take small sips whereas consuming,” says Benjamin Becker, MD, a neuromuscular neurologist at College of Michigan Well being in Ann Arbor. It will moisten the meals and type it right into a cohesive bolus (ball of meals).

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