My spouse has chewed through 3 in the last 2 days. Any ideas on how to get him to stop? He is on hospice so they are bringing over some more today. I have put his rubik cube next to him and will look for some more fiddle toys. He has many medical problems plus dementia.
My Husband was a chewer. Clothing, towels, cloth napkins, his hand. fingers. I looked for soft baby chew toys and got a few of those. It worked and he grew fond of a little bunny that he would chew the ears of.
Some of the baby chew toys and other finger toys crinkle and make sounds, most are soft and they are pretty durable. The other toys that worked well for me were soft dog toys. Again some are soft, meant to be chewed and durable.
The danger of this is he may chew off the nose part and swallow it.
Restraints are not an option--and taping the tubing down is more likely to be more irritating. So what else is there? Leave it off and let him be. Note Sedation will decrease his respiratory drive--he may be knocked out, but it can also kill him. I mean sedatives will decrease his inspiration/respiration drive so oxygen therapy is a moot point (unless he's intubated on the hospital's unit and full code).
PS: Do ****NOT**** try the aluminum foil suggestion. He will chew and swallow the foil and it is a very serious choking hazard. People with Alzheimer's do not sense the unpleasantness. Also do NOT use lemon juice on the tubing or other noxious food because that can lead to mouth sores and impair what little appetite and ability to swallow thickened water he has left, which creating mouth sores hinges on being cruel.
The cat would chase my mom's oxygen tubing, and bit holes in it at the most inconvenient times! I had to find something. Cord covering worked very well.