FOOD AND NUTRITION

7 Expert Tips for Beating MG Symptoms in the Kitchen

These tips may help when you’re experiencing MG symptoms and are craving a home-cooked meal.

Experiencing the unpredictability of myasthenia gravis (MG) can make cooking healthy meals and enjoying your time in the kitchen a real challenge. Symptoms, such as fatigue, muscle weakness and vision problems, can hinder your ability to prepare meals, use kitchen tools and maintain a consistent eating schedule. However, these simple yet effective strategies from the MG community can help set you up for lower-effort meals and pre-planned options when you need them most. But first, let’s look at the ways MG symptoms can impact your kitchen and eating routine.

Common MG symptoms and how they may affect your ability to cook

Fatigue from repeated muscle use
Fatigue can lower your energy levels, which can require frequent breaks and make it harder to complete recipes.
Eye problems
Symptoms like double vision and drooping eyelids can make it challenging to chop, measure and pour ingredients accurately.
Mouth, jaw and throat difficulties
Issues with the mouth and throat may lead to challenges communicating with others in the kitchen, as well as difficulties with chewing and swallowing certain foods.
Limb weakness
Weakness in the arms and legs can make it hard to stand for long periods, mix ingredients, grip pots and use kitchen utensils effectively.

Recognizing how MG symptoms impact your ability to prepare meals is key to setting achievable goals. By tracking your symptoms and learning your Myasthenia Gravis Activities of Daily Living (MG-ADL) score, you can gain valuable insights on how symptoms affect your daily life, which can help you in creating effective strategies to manage it.

7 cooking and kitchen tips from the MG community

Leah* has always been passionate about cooking, and that didn’t change when she was diagnosed with MG seven years ago. She’s carried that passion with her as she navigates life with MG—and it took a while to adjust. “It was hard,” she reflected. “I needed to figure out what things I could do without getting myself exhausted.” Now, she’s built up a wealth of wisdom on cooking and eating well with MG.

Whitney* is a professional chef whose dad, John,* lives with MG—so she knows firsthand how challenging cooking can be for those living with MG. She shares some of the tips she’s found to help John around MG-friendly nutrition and meal preparation.

1. Create a grocery list

Create a detailed grocery list to make the most of your energy, or use options like online delivery and curbside pickup to make shopping easier when MG symptoms make a trip to the grocery store difficult. Use the MG-Friendly Grocery Guide for ingredient ideas to plan your next meal. Write down meals you want to prepare for the week and organize your grocery list by store sections. Also, keep easy-to-chew foods in mind. Options like eggs, soft fruits and veggies (think avocados and bananas), oatmeal, soups and smoothies are just a few of the excellent options to choose from.

Get the MG-Friendly Grocery Guide for ingredient ideas for your next meal.

Download now

2. Shop for lower-effort alternatives

Having pre-prepped ingredients and easy-to-make meals can help you save time and effort—especially on days when MG symptoms make cooking more challenging—and provide options for days when limb weakness makes it more difficult to cook in the first place. Leah and Whitney both have a few favorite shortcuts:

Consider pre-prepped options: Whitney recommends looking for pre-cut veggies, especially those that are more taxing to peel and chop yourself, like butternut squash. Pre-cut options can be especially helpful on days when blurry vision makes using a knife difficult. Leah prefers pre-made salads with dressing included to cut down on chopping and assembly. Meal kits are another option and some can be delivered right to your door

Know your seasonings: Leah relies on all-in-one seasonings as a simple way to add quick flavor to meats and vegetables. “You can cook up ground beef and mix it with anything as long as it’s seasoned well,” she said. Both Leah and Whitney recommend using garlic powder and onion powder instead of chopping fresh garlic and onions to help avoid overworking your hands and standing for long periods

Keep staples for simple meals on hand: “I always have sandwich meat in the fridge,” Leah mentioned. “It’s a fallback for when I’m really tired and don’t want to cook.” Smoothies are another quick, easy way to make something nutritious

Whitney also shared a time-saving tip for chicken: “I suggest using ground chicken in recipes that call for chicken breast,” she said. “Form the ground chicken into a patty and season it with salt, pepper and garlic powder.” The result is still flavorful and filling, but cooks in much less time.

3. Set up your kitchen to be MG-friendly 

With some planning and organization, you can turn your kitchen into an environment that works best for you and your MG symptoms.

Leah recommends standing on a memory foam anti-fatigue mat during meal prep. You can even move it around the kitchen with you from task to task. If you’re experiencing leg weakness, consider sitting on a kitchen stool while prepping.

Leah also recommends using knives with plastic handles for chopping, rather than heavier stainless steel or wood handles. “Repetitive chopping is lifting,” she noted. “If you’re lifting something, like a weight, it’s going to get tiring. It’s the same thing with kitchen knives.” Similarly, she uses plastic mixing and serving bowls for a lighter lift.

Father and daughter cooking together at the stovetop, preparing a meal with visible utensils and ingredients.

Have everything where you can easily grab it. If it’s not organized, it’s going to take more time in the kitchen than you want to spend.

Whitney
John's daughter and caregiver

MG-friendly nutrition and meal prepping also includes kitchen organization. Whitney recommends grouping tools that you tend to use together and keeping ingredients like spices within reach while you’re cooking. “Have everything where you can easily grab it,” she suggested. “If it’s not organized, it’s going to take more time in the kitchen than you want to spend.” 

4. Let gadgets do the work for you

When it comes to kitchen gadgets, there are a wide range of tools that can help reduce the physical effort required to cook, making tasks more manageable on days you are experiencing hand weakness that makes it hard to grip and use kitchen tools effectively. They range from small, simple tools to bigger appliances with more functions. Check out a few of Whitney’s and Leah’s favorites, and be sure to keep heavier items on the countertop or within easy reach to minimize lifting.

Egg slicer: Whitney found that this basic tool has more than one application—it’s also great for slicing anything soft, like strawberries or mushrooms
Electric chopper: Smaller and less cumbersome than a food processor, this tool can be a great time-saver and may reduce strain on your arms and hands when prepping vegetables, nuts and herbs
Pressure cooker: Leah uses this countertop tool for cooking things like rice and dry beans without having to stand over the stove. Some models also have a slow-cooker function for one-pot soups and stews
Food processor: For more complex preparations, a food processor with attachments for slicing, shredding, chopping and even mixing dough can help cut down on preparation, minimize time spent standing and the need to mix by hand
Sous vide cooker: Are you an adventurer when it comes to new and different cooking techniques? Then you might be interested in one of Whitney’s current favorite cooking tools, the sous vide cooker. Sous vide cooking involves vacuum-sealing meat or vegetables in a bag, immersing the bag in water and using a sous vide device to circulate water at a specified temperature. “It’s an easy way to make anything more tender,” Whitney added. Even better, she said, it's virtually impossible to overcook food with this method

5. When you’ve got the energy, use it

There’s no rule that says you can only chop an onion the minute you plan to cook it. Leah recommends prepping meals one step at a time throughout the day.

“If it’s a good day where I have energy, I start thinking about what I want to do for dinner right after breakfast,” Leah said. “I take everything that I need from the fridge, wash it and take a break. Then I get up, chop one thing and take a break. I put everything in little bowls as I go so it’s ready when it’s time to cook. Exactly like a cooking show!”

She pointed out that it can be helpful not to pressure yourself to clean up as you cook. “The old me would have been thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, let’s wash, let’s clean, let’s wipe things down,’” she explained. Now, she often gives herself a chance to rest before coming back to the cleanup.

6. Prep for multiple meals at once

With a little planning ahead, you can turn one cooking session into days’ worth of meals. “My dad likes to cook a big breakfast,” Whitney said. “But that means standing over the stove and cooking every element. You can utilize those ingredients to do an egg casserole or frittata instead and have it throughout the entire week.”

Whitney also recommends maximizing your prep time by doubling a recipe and freezing the extra portions. For instance, this recipe for minestrone soup is easy to double up on. It’s a win-win—you’ll have something to enjoy today and something ready for those days when symptoms flare up and cooking feels like too much.

Smiling woman standing in a kitchen, joyfully preparing food with vegetables and pots on the countertop.

I had to learn how to take a step back and say, ‘It’s OK if I don’t do it today.'

Leah
Living with MG

7. When you’re feeling low energy, give yourself a break 

Leah knows how it feels when MG symptoms force a change of plans. If you’re excited to try a new recipe, it can be frustrating to wake up that day and discover your symptoms may prevent you from preparing it.

“We get really self-conscious and frustrated with ourselves about having to change our lifestyle,” she acknowledged. “I had to learn how to take a step back and say, ‘It’s OK if I don’t do it today.’”

This is also where some of these tips come together: Having easy alternatives and a stockpile of leftovers in the freezer can really help on days when cooking is far from your mind.

Ready to put these new tips into practice? Dive into Alicia's recipe for hearty black bean burgers. It's a savory, vegetarian dish that's packed with flavor, easy-to-chew and tailored with MG-friendly prep modifications.

These tips and tricks are designed to help you cook and enjoy food, even on days when MG symptoms make things more challenging. But the ultimate goal is to find ways to better manage your MG over time so you experience fewer symptoms. By working closely with your healthcare team, monitoring your symptoms and making gradual adjustments to your lifestyle or treatment plan, you may discover strategies that help you bring more ease back into your daily routines.

Please consult your healthcare team for which recipes are best for your dietary needs, whether any modifications would be appropriate, and consider any allergies or dietary restrictions before making these recipes.

Search results

7 Expert Tips for Beating MG Symptoms in the Kitchen

These tips may help when you’re experiencing MG symptoms and are craving a home-cooked meal.

Common MG symptoms and how they may affect your ability to cook