Anyone caring for someone with dysphagia might be interested in a "tip" given by a doctor caring for the husband of someone in my local support group: To prevent the aspiration of bacteria, brush the teeth and clean the gums first thing in the morning, before any food goes down. That helps prevent any bacteria that form during the night from being aspirated during eating or drinking the first meal.

I've been doing this for the past month or so. It seems an easy way to try to prevent something serious. I wish there were an equally easy way to prevent UTI's.

It's certainly worth a try.

In my experience, the main "thing" that gets aspirated is mucus or saliva, not food or beverage.

thanks for this tip. Ma has been coughing for days now. She no longer wears dentures and is on pureed foods. Hospice brings these sponges on like a q-tip to clean her mouth but I don't think it gets done every day. I appreciate the tip.