In this article, we have reviewed the best busy boards for dementia patients. If you are in a hurry, the table below gives a quick snapshot of the top ones.
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Top Choice
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Second Choice
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Best Value
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What's great?:
Eliminates Loneliness, Handcrafted, Portable
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What's great?:
Releases Anxiety, Improves Memory Skills, Heavy Duty
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What's great?:
Easy to Clean, Handmade and Durable, Unique & Attractive Design:
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What could be better?:
May not be very durable
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What could be better?:
A bit heavy
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What could be better?:
Cannot be wall mounted
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Contents
50 mn people worldwide suffer from dementia[1].
If you have ever taken care of a dementia patient, then you would know that it’s nothing less than babysitting. In fact, it can be even more challenging to take care of seniors with dementia than toddlers.
Dementia patients are usually always in a restless condition, and they can become really aggressive and harm themselves or people around them if they are left unattended.
Busy boards are among the best ways to keep the patent’s hands and mind occupied by giving them engaging activities.
Busy boards arouse the patient’s interest in enjoyable activities. In fact, these boards contribute a lot towards building a good relationship between the elderly and caregivers by engaging the patient.
This article will discuss the best busy boards for dementia patients available on amazon.
Best Busy Boards for Dementia Patients
Our Top Choice – GeriGuard Solutions Memory Loss & Alzheimer’s Dementia Fidget Board
The GeriGuard Solutions Memory Loss & Alzheimer's Dementia Fidget Board Activity Center, New Compact Size: 11 inches x 5 inches, RED is our top choice for best busy boards for dementia patients because of the following reasons:
- The activity board keeps the patient’s mind and thoughts engaged.
- Support hand control and build muscle strength.
- Help to reinforce memory skills in seniors.
- Excellent for Long Car Rides, waiting in the doctor’s office. Reduces loneliness.
- Includes a barrel bolt, light switch, sash lock, wheel, doorstop, and a zipper.
#1 GeriGuard Solutions For Memory Loss & Alzheimer’s Dementia Fidget/ Activity Board
The GeriGuard Solutions Dementia Activity/Fidget Board’s dimesions are 11.5 x 5.75 x 1.5 inches, and it weighs 1.7 pounds.
Features and Benefits
- Effective: This Board is excellent for Seniors who are suffering from any memory loss. This Activity Board will help in keeping the mind and hands engaged. It’s perfect for adults with dementia, especially those who liked to work with their hands.
- Portable: The activity Board is excellent for Long drives due to its compact size or while waiting to meet the doctor. It eliminates boredom and reduces agitation. The activities support hand control and build muscle strength keeping the seniors busy. It helps keeping the elder`s mind occupied. These stimulating activities also help to recall the memory lost in seniors.
- Helpful for Caregivers: Taking care of dementia or early-stage Alzheimer’s patients is hugely stressful. Mentally stimulating activities for seniors help families and caregivers through difficult times.
- Eliminates Loneliness: Many elder-Care studies have said that patients with dementia who engaged in these types of activities have experienced feelings of well-being and a better quality of life, including enhanced communication and interactions with people around them.
- Handcrafted: The boards feature a barrel bolt, chain lock, light switch, sash lock, wheel, doorstop, and a zipper. It is best to use when placed flat on a table or a lap. It is not recommended to be wall hung.
Why should you buy it?
It is a very lightweight busy board, and it’s quite portable as well. It effectively decreases the level of anxiety in old dementia patients
You might like to read: Best Books on Dementia
#2 TMC Toys LLC Dorothy Busy Board
The TMC Toys LLC Dorothy Busy Board’s dimension are 11.5 x 2 x 11.5 inches and it comes in white, black and red color.
Features and Benefits
- Handmade: This heavy-duty Dorothy busy board is entirely human-made with top quality materials for excellent durability, including various activities for elderly patients with dementia.
- Multiple Activities: This busy board features numerous activities to keep the dementia patient’s mind occupied. The various activities include a dog collar, a retractable clasp, a chain lock, and a light switch. All these activities never let the patient feel bored or lonely.
- Portable: This board is lightweight enough to carry around with you anywhere you go. It also features a barrel bolt and carrying handle, which makes it even easier to carry.
- Easy to Clean: This Dorothy busy board is painted with enamel paint, which is durable and also very easy to clean as the color does not fade or come out while cleaning.
- Safe to Use: This busy board is effortless to use as it has shoe lacing tied to the hooks that prevent any unwanted injuries and ensures the safety of your loved ones.
Why should you buy it?
It is a lightweight and portable busy board. It is one of the safest busy boards to use because it has shoe lacing tied to the hooks to prevent injuries.
#3 TMC Toys LLC Ben Busy Board
The TMC Toys LLC Ben Busy Board’s dimensions are 11.5 x 1.5 x 5.75 inches and it comes in white, orange, and blue color.
Features and Benefits
- High-Quality Material: The heavy-duty Ben busy board is one of the best human-made busy boards in the market with top quality materials for excellent durability, including various activities for elderly patients with dementia.
- Multiple Activities: The busy board features a zipper, wheel, sash lock, light switch, barrel bolt, and a doorstop. All these activities help the patients never to feel bored or lonely while also providing them something to play around with.
- Easy Cleaning: This Ben busy board is painted with enamel paint, which is durable and relatively easy to clean as the color does not fade or come out while cleaning.
- Portable: The busy board is easy to carry in your car or to take with you when you are visiting a doctor as it is lightweight and also small in size.
- Variety: This Ben busy board is available in three different colors white, orange, and blue, offering enough options for the buyer to choose from.
Why should you buy it?
It is easy to carry a busy board. This is one of the best handmade and well designed busy board available in the market, with three colors to choose from.
You might like to read: Best Medical Alert System For Alzheimer’s And Dementia Patients
#4 Tag Products Usa Memory & Mental Stimulation for Alzheimer’s & Dementia
This Tag Products Usa Memory & Mental Stimulation Board comes with various activities to keep patients occupied and weights around 12 pounds.
Features and Benefits
- Enhancing Skills: This unique free-standing large latch and key center features a wide variety of common and day-to-day activities that restore fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. It has the perfect activity for your loved ones with Dementia or Alzheimer’s, especially for those who always like to work with their hands.
- Eliminates Boredom: This board reinforces your old skills such as hand control, muscle strength, and finger dexterity. It entertains Alzheimer’s & Dementia patients for long periods of time. It a piece of excellent equipment to keep your loved one occupied and help alleviate boredom.
- Releases Anxiety: This board helps busy hands stay busy by fastening and unfastening the many varieties of styles of latches and locks.
- Improves Memory Skills: This board helps improve the patient’s memory skills effectively.
- Heavy Duty: The solid hardwood with brass plated hardware provides excellent durability. It is made with exceptional craftsmanship. Its dimensions are 17 x 4x 27 inches while the Shipping weight 12 pounds.
Why should you buy it?
This board is made with heavy-duty materials for maximum durability. It is best for aggressive dementia patients who may break a regular busy board.
#5 TMC Toys LLC Katherine Busy Board
The TMC Toys LLC Katherine Busy Board’s dimensions are 11.5 x 3.5 x 11.5 inches and it is available in white color.
Features and Benefits
- Handmade and Durable: This Katherine busy board is made from high quality and heavy-duty materials that provide excellent durability. The board includes various activities for elderly patients with dementia.
- Multiple Activities: The busy board feature a light switch, a barrel bolt, a D-ring, a sash lock, a chain lock, a wheel caster that swivels, a doorstop (rubber tips are glued on), a handle for carrying, and a door to open and close. All these activities help the patients never to feel bored or lonely.
- Unique & Attractive Design: You can open the door to find velcro circles that alternate between soft and rough sides. The prism tape (designs vary) on the door’s underside shows the colors of the rainbow when light shines on it.
- Mind Simulation: This busy board is one of the best in stimulating the dementia patient’s mind and also helping in their recovery. The unique design provides plenty of activities to the patients that are not just for them to twiddle but visually pleasing as well, such as the underside of the door showing rainbow colors when you reflect light on it.
- Easy to Clean: This Katherine busy board is painted with enamel paint, which is durable and also quite easy to clean as the color does not fade or come out while cleaning.
Why should you buy it?
It is one of the best busy board for mind stimulation of dementia patients. The door’s underside shows the colors of the rainbow when light shines on it, providing a pleasing view.
You might like to read: Best Door Locks For Dementia Patients
Buyer’s Guide: Best Busy Boards for Dementia Patients
Multiple Activities
The busy board you are buying for dementia patients should have multiple activities, and they should also be safe to use for them. Multiple activities will always keep their mind occupied, which, as a result, will decrease their anxiety and boredom while also making them feel less lonely. Various activities also help stimulate their minds helping in slowing down dementia.
Portable
The board should be lightweight and easy to carry to take anywhere with you without any hassle. Dementia patients tend to get even more restless when they are in an unfamiliar place; a busy board will help them a lot in that situation to keep their calm.
Easy to Wash
Any product made for dementia patients will definitely get dirty because of their restlessness. It’s always better to buy products that are easy to wash.
Frequently asked questions: Best Busy Boards for Dementia Patients.
Why are busy boards considered good for dementia patients?
A busy board reduces agitation and mentally engage your dementia patients. People with the condition of dementia can use busy boards as a way to help with fine motor skills, finger dexterity, and hand-eye coordination, or even muscle rebuilding.
What are the things to include in a homemade busy board?
A homemade busy board should include:
- Locks and Latches
- Zippers, Snaps, Laces, and Velcro Closures
- Flippy Chain
- Plastic or Wooden Gears
- Knobs
- Switches
- Stress Ball or Squeeze Toy
Conclusion
In our opinion, the GeriGuard Solutions Memory Loss & Alzheimer's Dementia Fidget Board Activity Center, New Compact Size: 11 inches x 5 inches, RED is the best choice among the various options that we have considered because it effectively decreases anxiety.
The Memory & Mental Stimulation for Alzheimer’s & Dementia – Memory Loss Toy Standing Latch & Key Center is our next best choice because of its heavy-duty construction.
If you are looking for a value for money option, you can also consider the Made in the USA - Busy Board Activity Board Alzheimer Dementia Latch Board, which offers great value and features at a very reasonable price point.
Other activities to keep dementia patient busy – Best Game Apps for Seniors With Dementia, and Best Gloves and Mitts for Dementia Fidgeting.
Other guides on how to care for a dementia patient
References:
[1] https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dementia