Most of us have opened a fridge and found a container we cannot identify, shoved behind the milk and sealed in a fog of its own. For a man living alone, that container may be the only thing he cooked all week, and it may be the first sign that the rest of the routine is slipping.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
What going wrong looks like
Look for containers with no label and no way to tell what is inside. Look for sauces with a fuzzy top, liquids that have separated into layers, and takeout cartons that have been stacked and forgotten. Notice a sour smell when the door opens, and notice whether the same container keeps coming back week after week, shifted a little each time, with nothing taken out of it.
The other side of the picture matters too. Milk that is always the same carton, shelves that are almost bare, or a fridge that no longer holds anything fresh can mean he has stopped buying as well as stopped eating.
A five-minute check on each visit
Open the fridge and pull out anything you cannot identify, anything with a sour smell, and anything that looks past its best. Put it in a bag and take it out to the bin without a speech. Then wipe the shelf and check the door seal by closing it on a sheet of paper. If the paper slides out easily, the seal may need attention, but that is a separate job from the food.
How to talk about it
Ask him, lightly, 'What did you make that's still in here? I want to know what you like so I can cook it with you next time.' Most men will answer a question about their own cooking before they will answer a question about their habits. If he says he has been eating out, that is useful to know. If he does not remember what is in the back, that is useful too, and you can say so kindly.
Keep the tone in the kitchen, not in a report. You are clearing a shelf together, not inspecting him.
What to do tonight
Clear the top shelf first. Keep a roll of masking tape and a marker in the drawer, and ask him to write what he cooks and when on the lid before it goes in. Make a short list of the things he wants on hand, and put that list on the fridge door where he can see it.
When to raise it with his doctor
If the fridge stays nearly empty for weeks, or he seems to be losing interest in food along with other changes you notice, write down what you have seen and bring those notes to his next appointment. You do not need to diagnose anything yourself. You only need to give the doctor an accurate picture.