Nutrition and Diet Therapy 6th Edition by Carroll Lutz, Erin Mazur , Nancy Litch

Exercise 1

Ms. R is a 70-year-old widow under treatment for breast cancer. She is being cared for by her daughter, 1.Ms. S, with assistance from a home health-care service. Despite fairly good oral intake at the daughter's urging, 1.Ms. R continues to lose weight and now carries 95 lb on her 5-ft, 4-in. frame. Her main complaint regarding food is its bitter taste. 1.Ms. S asks why her mother continues to lose weight when she is taking half the meals and more than half the supplements offered. Which of the following replies by the nurse would be most appropriate?
A) "Your mother must be too active and using more calories than she is taking in."
B) "Probably the medications are dehydrating her. We should increase her fluid intake."
C) "Frequently the tumor short-circuits the body's metabolism so that nutrients cannot be used normally."
D) "She doesn't take in enough protein to prevent loss of muscle. We should try supplements of amino acid powders."