Home Blending Your Tube-Feeding Formula – Enteral
Considering home-blended tube feeding? Proper planning ensures safety, nutrition, and success—here’s how to get started.
Homemade tube-feeding formulas can be a great way to provide balanced, personalized nutrition for yourself or a loved one. Blending your own formula allows for greater control over ingredients, flavors, and nutrient quality. However, starting this process can feel overwhelming.
No One-Size-Fits-All Solution
Enteral nutrition is not a one-size-fits-all therapy. Each person has unique nutritional needs, medical considerations, and tolerance levels. What works well for one individual may not be suitable for another. Factors such as digestion, allergies, and metabolic conditions all play a role in determining the best formula.
Evolving Nutritional Needs
Your unique needs and preferences may also evolve over time. Health conditions, activity levels, and appetites can change, requiring adjustments to ingredients and consistency. Understanding the basics of home-blended formulas—and working closely with your dietitian and healthcare team—can ensure safe, effective tube feeding that meets both medical and personal goals.
Traditional vs. Blenderized Tube Feeding
Traditional tube-feeding formulas come in ready-to-use containers, providing complete nutrition with added vitamins and minerals. These products are carefully formulated to meet medical guidelines, ensuring a balance of macronutrients, micronutrients, and hydration.
Blenderized tube feeding (BTF) has gained popularity in recent years. These formulas use real food ingredients and may or may not include added vitamins and minerals, depending on the brand. Many patients and caregivers prefer this option for a more natural approach to enteral nutrition.
Making Your Own Blended Formula
Another option is preparing homemade blended formulas using whole foods. This method allows for greater control over ingredients, catering to personal preferences, allergies, and specific dietary needs. Some people combine traditional tube feeding with homemade blends to achieve a balance of convenience and customization.
If you’re considering home-blended tube feeding, proper planning is essential. Understanding nutrient balance, food safety, and equipment requirements will help ensure a smooth and successful transition. Here are some key tips to help you get started.
Do’s for Homemade Blended Tube Feeding
- Follow strict food-safety guidelines to prevent contamination before preparing blended formulas. This includes thoroughly cleaning your hands, work surfaces, and all appliances before preparation. Additionally, it’s important to regularly check for ingredient recalls to ensure food safety. And use only fully cooked meats, poultry, and fish to reduce the risk of foodborne illness.
- Follow proper food storage guidelines. Refrigerate homemade formulas for up to 48 hours or freeze for up to three months.
- Use a high-powered blender. This helps create a smooth consistency and prevents food particles from clogging the feeding tube.
- Weigh ingredients with a kitchen scale. Precise measurements when following recipes help maintain nutritional balance in each blend.
- Grind oats into a fine powder before cooking and blending. This improves texture and digestion.
- Allow cooked foods to cool to lukewarm or room temperature before blending. Hot foods can affect consistency and nutrient stability.
- Combine blenderized tube feeding (BTF) with commercial formulas if needed. A mixed approach offers flexibility and convenience.
- Keep commercial formulas on hand. They serve as a backup if a blend doesn’t turn out as expected or help with easier feeding while traveling or on busy days.
- Use a 14Fr or larger feeding tube. Home-blended formulas are naturally thicker than commercial options and require a wider tube to prevent clogs.
- Save cooking liquid from vegetables. This can be used to thin blends while retaining nutrients.
- Increase water flushes. Blended formulas typically contain less water than commercial formulas, so extra hydration is essential.
- Adjust calorie intake as needed. The body metabolizes real food differently, often requiring 25 – 50 percent more calories than commercial formulas.
- Rely on trusted sources for recipes. Check to make sure your blends are nutritionally safe.
- Work closely with your doctor and nutrition care team. Professional guidance is key when starting and maintaining a home-blended feeding plan.
Don’ts for Homemade Blended Tube Feeding
- Do not use raw or undercooked meats, poultry, fish, or eggs. These increase the risk of foodborne illness.
- Avoid fruits with small seeds. Seeds from berries and similar fruits can be difficult to blend and may clog the feeding tube.
- Do not rely on a pump unless it is necessary. Home-blended formulas are thicker than commercial options and are best administered via syringe.
- Use a pump if feeding through the jejunum (middle section of the small intestine). However, the formula must be thinned to ensure proper flow.
- Do not transition to blended formulas too quickly. Gradually introduce BTF by mixing it with commercial formula. Start with a ¼ blended formula and a ¾ original formula on day one, then increase to ½ and ½ on day two, adjusting based on tolerance.
- Never leave home-blended formula at room temperature for more than two hours. Bacteria can grow quickly, increasing the risk of contamination.
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References:
Geurink, H. (2024). 6 common mistakes to avoid when blending real food for tube feeding. Blended Tube Feeding with Hilarie, RD.
Ireton-Jones, C., Martin, K., Emch, V., Reddick, C., Epp, L., & Carr, V. (2017). Dietitians offer sample recipes and helpful hints for blenderized tube feeding. The Oley Foundation.
Weeks C. (2019). Home Blenderized Tube Feeding: A Practical Guide for Clinical Practice. Clinical and translational gastroenterology, 10(2), e00001.
