Meal ideas and advice when you need to follow a level 6 soft and bite-sized diet - Nutrition and Dietetic Service / Adult Speech and Language Therapy Information for Patients - June 2023

Sep 27, 2026

Uploaded by Adam

Meal ideas and patient guidance for adults who have difficulty chewing or swallowing and are advised to follow a level 6 soft, bite-sized diet. The leaflet explains safe texture requirements, including very soft and moist food, and bite-sized portions no larger than 1.5 x 1.5 cm to reduce choking risk. It provides examples of suitable foods across meats, fish, vegetables, cereals, rice and fruit, and lists textures to avoid such as hard/dry, chewy, crispy, crunchy, stringy, sharp, mixed thin and thick, and foods that include skins, bones, or large lumps. Practical tips cover improving chewability and enjoyment.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Main points

What is a soft and bite sized diet?

Examples of suitable foods

Food textures to avoid on a soft and bite sized diet

Practical tips

Meal ideas and advice when you need to follow a level 6 soft and bite-sized diet Nutrition and Dietetic Service / Adult Speech and Language Therapy Information for Patients Produced: June 2023 Review: June 2026 Leaflet number: 1410 Version: 2 Main points 1. Your food needs to be very soft and moist. 2. Bite sized pieces of food should be no bigger than 1.5 x 1.5cm in size. 3. You should try to have lots of different foods in your diet. 4. Some foods should be avoided (see page 3) . Introduction If you are having difficulty with chewing or swallowing food, you may need to have a soft and bite-sized diet as advised by a speech and language therapist. The aim of this leaflet is to give you ideas for suitable meal choices, as well as useful tips on how to make mealtimes as enjoyable as possible. If you have recently lost weight or are underweight, you will find some useful ideas on how to make food as nourishing as possible. Health information and support is [available at www.nhs.uk](available at www.nhs.uk)[ ](available at www.nhs.uk)or call 111 for non-emergency medical advice Visit [www.leicestershospitals.nhs.uk](www.leicestershospitals.nhs.uk) for maps and information about visiting Leicester’s Hospitals To give feedback about this information sheet, contact [InformationForPatients@uhl-tr.nhs.uk](InformationForPatients@uhl-tr.nhs.uk) 1 Re-use of this leaflet is restricted by Creative Commons license | What is a soft and bite sized diet?
A soft and bite sized diet consists of foods that are very soft, tender and moist (but with no separate thin liquid dripping from the food) . It is in bite sized pieces (for adults, 1.5cm x 1.5cm that is roughly the size of a thumb nail/ width of standard dinner fork) to reduce choking risk.
• Can be eaten with a fork or spoon.
• Can be mashed/ broken down with pressure from a fork or spoon.
• Chewing is needed before swallowing.
• A knife is not needed to cut this food. Pressure from a fork or spoon held on its side can be used to cut or break this texture into smaller pieces. | | --- | | | | The International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative 2016 [https://iddsi.org/framework/](https://iddsi.org/framework/)
Examples of suitable foods
• Bite sized pieces of cooked, tender meat (if texture cannot be served tender or soft at 1.5 cm x 1.5 cm, serve minced and moist) .
• Soft fish (no bones) -that can be broken into pieces with fork.
• Casserole/ stew/ curry – if final cooked pieces of meat, fish or vegetables are soft and tender and bite sized, no hard lumps and liquid portion very thick.
• Bite sized pieces of fruit – serve mashed, no stringy parts or excess juice.
• Steamed or boiled vegetables with final cooked size or pieces = 1.5cm. Stir fried vegetables are often too firm and are not soft and tender so should be avoided.
• Fully softened smooth cereal with soft tender lumps no bigger than 1.5cm and no excess fluid/ milk.
• Rice should not be dry, grainy or sticky It should not separate into separate grains. It may need a thick smooth sauce to hold the rice together for example, rice pudding, risotto.
• Bread is not suitable unless assessed as suitable by speech and language therapist on an individual basis. | [2](2 www.leicestershospitals.nhs.uk)[ www.leicestershospitals.nhs.uk](2 www.leicestershospitals.nhs.uk) | Food textures to avoid on a soft and bite sized diet | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | Food characteristic to avoid | Examples of foods to avoid | | | Mixed thin and thick textures Soup with pieces of food, cereal with milk
Hard or dry food Nuts, raw vegetables (for example carrot, cauliflower, broccoli), dry cakes, bread, dry cereal Tough and stringy food Steak, pineapple, celery Chewy food Lollies, sweets, cheese chunks, marshmallows, chewing gum, sticky mashed potato, dried fruits, sticky foods Crispy food Crackling, crisp bacon, cornflakes Crunchy food Raw carrot, raw apple, po

FAQs

What does a level 6 soft and bite-sized diet require?

Foods should be very soft and moist, served in bite-sized pieces no bigger than 1.5 x 1.5 cm for adults. Chewing is needed before swallowing, and foods should be easy to mash or break down with a fork or spoon.

Which foods are examples of what you can include?

Suitable options include tender bite-sized cooked meat, soft fish without bones, tender casseroles/stews/curries with no hard lumps, mashed fruit without stringy parts, soft tender vegetables in final cooked bite-sized pieces, smooth softened cereal with tender lumps, and rice held together with a thick smooth sauce (e.g., risotto or rice pudding).

What textures should be avoided on this diet?

Avoid mixed thin and thick textures, hard or dry foods, tough/stringy or chewy foods, crispy or crunchy foods, sharp or spiky items, foods with skins or outer shells, foods with husks, bone or gristle, sticky or gummy foods, stringy items, and large or hard lumps larger than 1.5 x 1.5 cm.

Sep 27, 2026

Uploaded by Adam