What would you like to eat today? If you’re less than enthusiastic about the commercial formula available to you for tube feeding, it’s time to talk to your nutrition advisor about adding in some home-made options. You might have heard about BTF. That’s short for blenderized tube feeding, a way to expand the range of foods you take in through your feeding tube.
To make your own meals, you’ll use a powerful blender that can mix whole foods to a smooth consistency so they can flow through your tubing. Though most patients can meet their nutrition needs with commercial tube-feeding formulas, there are lots of reasons to consider incorporating blenderized food in a nutrition plan.
Your doctor and home nutrition team can help you to decide whether it is a good fit for you. If it is, they can show you how to include it in your nutrition plan and how to manage it.
Ways to use BTF
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As an occasional or regular supplement to commercially prepared formula
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As your primary form of home tube feeding, using commercially prepared formula as a supplement or when traveling
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As 100% of your tube-feeding plan
Benefits of BTF
While many “tubies” just like the idea of getting back to planning and making their own meals, blenderized food is also a good option for patients with a food allergy or intolerance because you can avoid specific ingredients like corn, cow’s milk and soy proteins that are often part of commercial formula.
And, though you get all of the essential nutrients from a commercially prepared formula, blenderized food can supply a wider range of phytonutrients and fibers while avoiding the ones you might prefer to avoid, like corn syrup, sugar, soy and corn oil
Making your own blenderized food at home can be cost-effective, especially if your insurance coverage doesn’t pay for formula. Most of all, you’ll enjoy being able to prepare your own food and share in your family’s meal-time routine.
A few tips
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A tube size of greater than 14 French is recommended to help prevent tube clogs.
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Bolus and gravity feeding are the best methods for BTF and the recommended hang time is two hours or less.
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Not all feeding pumps will work with BTF. Using the wrong pump could damage it, and might not infuse the amount noted on the pump infusion record.
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You should always follow food safety guidelines and good sanitary practice when preparing your food to help reduce the risk of food-borne illness. It is especially important to clean the blender properly to help reduce the risk.
So, see what your doctor and nutrition team have to say about getting started with BTF. If you are looking for ways to bring some variety into your feeding tube, you should be getting out your blender.
This information is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment. Talk to your doctor or health care provider about your medical condition and prior to starting any new treatment. Coram assumes no liability whatsoever for the information provided or for any diagnosis or treatment made as a result.
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