The quality of hospital food is a major determinant for patient care. The food is eaten on the wards, but also in rehabilitation centers and nursing homes, and it must be well adapted to patients’ diseases and needs. At the same time, it should also be enjoyable and give patients pleasure. This article discusses a new approach to hospital food that takes patient perspectives into account.

Patients are often very critical of their diet in hospital, because the menus are not tailored to them and do not match their expectations. The food is therefore perceived as unpleasant and depressing, which may contribute to a prolonged hospital stay. In addition, the food is not well adapted to their physiological requirements. The aim of this article is to propose a solution to these problems by creating a “diet hospital” that offers patients the possibility to choose their own meal, thus restoring its importance as part of patient care.

There are many different therapeutic diets used in hospitals, but their indications are often based on arbitrary criteria and not on the evaluation of the nutritional status. As a result, their use decreases energy delivery and leads to underfeeding. This is especially true for diets reduced in salt, fat or texture, which increase the risk of malnutrition for most patients.강남다이어트병원

Indications for the standard and hospital diet should be re-evaluated at least every five days in accordance with the disease course and monitored oral intake. If dietary modifications prove to be insufficient to meet protein and energy requirements, nutrition support should be offered as recommended by the ESPEN guidelines (e.g., ONS, enteral nutrition, PN).

The standard hospital diet should be rich in protein and lipids and low in carbohydrate. It should be designed to ensure a high intake of micronutrients in the range of the nutrient intake recommendations for the general population.

Dietary requirements are highly individual and related to religion, culture, beliefs or even taste preferences. These dietary requirements should only be taken into account to the extent that they are medically justified or can be substantiated by the individual. The same is valid for presumed food intolerances, which should be excluded in a reasonable way from the hospital menu (see recommendation 6).강남다이어트

Patients with severe allergy can experience symptoms starting at a few hours after eating the allergen, ranging from digestive problems or itching to anaphylaxis and shock. These severe clinical manifestations justify the exclusion of the food allergen from the hospital menu. Patients who are allergic to gluten should not be offered foods containing it. The same is true for patients who are lactose intolerant. The aim of the diet hospital is to offer patients an attractive selection of meals that meet their physiologic and clinical requirements and are adapted to their health situation, as well as their own personal preferences. This will lead to a happier and healthier inpatients, better patient satisfaction and lower costs for the hospital.