General body hygiene can become more difficult for your loved one as his Alzheimer’s disease progresses. He may not have the physical ability to care for himself anymore, and may not remember his need to bathe, wash his hair or brush his teeth.

People with Alzheimer’s frequently have difficulty with grooming, taking care of their hair and shaving. He might forget about these tasks in their entirety. Or, he may not be able to remember the complex tasks that need to be done to wash, dry and comb the hair. He also might not be able to remember the tools that he needs to do his hair, such as a blow dryer or a comb.

You may need to provide your loved one with some help as he does his hair. As you do this task, keep in mind some of the Alzheimer’s aids that can help you with this process:

  • Aqua Wash Gloves – Bathing gloves that provide a total and gentle bath and water is not required. This can be helpful if you need to bathe your loved one in addition to doing their hair, but water is not readily available.
  • Aqua Shampoo Gloves – Covered with hair shampoo solution so that hair can be cleaned without any rinsing.
  • No Rinse Hair Conditioner – This product will condition the hair but does not need to be rinsed out.
  • EZ Shower – Ideal for given a shower to a person with Alzheimer’s who is not able to leave the bed.

The Alheimer’s products above should definitely help you to bathe your loved one and to keep him as clean as possible.

As part of the hair cleaning and styling process, your loved one also may not want to bathe at all. It is important for you to make as many positive associations as possible with the bathing and hair cleaning process. You should precede the bath and hair time with some sort of pleasant activity, such as eating an ice cream or listening to a favorite TV show.

Also, try to put positive things into the bathroom area for the patient. You might hang up favorite pictures, or buy favorite types of soap or towels.

It also is important for you to keep a constant routine for the bathing and hair styling process. If you alter the routine too much, it may upset your loved one.

We also like to use a s little water as possible during the bath. Getting  into deeper water can upset some Alzheimer’s patients. And it is a good idea for you to put the water into the bath tub before the patient even comes into the room. The loud water sounds can upset the person, and if you have to speak loudly over the water, it could upset your loved one.