I commend Mark Nassutti for the wisdom he displays in his opinion piece in the July 22 issue. He appears to have had excellent counsel on matters of death and dying. Hopefully, those who love and care for him will respect his wish not to be fed when he can no longer feed himself.

The problem families have is that feeding is one of the ways we show love to one another, and it’s hard for families and friends not to feed or hydrate someone when he/she cannot do so themselves. Becoming so ill that one does not eat or drink has been for centuries the way most terminally ill people announce to the world that they are soon to die. And irreversible dementia is, for all practical purposes, a terminal illness.

I recommend two things for those facing a situation similar to that described by Mark, or even at an earlier stage of planning:

1) Ask your physician for a POLST form (Physician’s Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment). When completed by an individual and his/her physician, this form supersedes Advanced Directives and Living Wills. In it one declares one’s personal wishes for treatment in situations such as Mark describes.

2) Purchase a copy of “Hard Choices for Loving People” by Hank Dunn (www.hardchoices.com). The book clearly explains the pros and cons of treatment options at the end of life.

Charles A. Pilcher MD, Kirkland