Practicing What We Preach: Healthy Food in Health Care

Health care is a hot topic in the U.S. these days, as is the intersection of our health and food systems. Increasingly attention is turned towards food as a major contributor to our collective failing health, and by extension our over burdened health care system. This is all well and good, and indeed we, as a country, should be working towards implementing preventative lifestyles based on a truly healthy diet and exercise. However one seemingly inconsequential aspect of our health care facilities that often gets overlooked is hospital food service. If we intend to send the message that healthy, sustainable, whole food is directly correlated to the preservation of healthy bodies, what better place to practice what we preach than the hospital cafeteria?

Standard hospital fare is about equivalent to standard school cafeteria fare. It's cheap and highly processed. There are overcooked vegetable medley and jell-o pudding cups, instant mashed potatoes and chicken patties. There are candy bars and soda in the vending machines at the end of every corridor. This may be a gross generalization, and certainly there is a spectrum of food quality depending on which hospital you visit. But unfortunately in many cafeterias, this description isn't too far off mark. As awareness around food and health grows, more patients and concerned community members are clamoring for quality food in health institutions.

One of the health care providers blazing the trail for revamping hospital food is Fletcher Allen Health Care in Vermont, and they're setting the bar pretty high. This past year, Fletcher Allen received a large federal grant to develop food programs in health care that would connect the hospital with local farmers and integrate fresh, healthy, regional food. The energy efficient, low-waste "Harvest Caf" facility sources local soy milk, milk, honey, ground beef, chicken and eggs, a myriad of fruits and vegetables, and organic coffee. To help reduce the amount of food waste, the hospital delivers food to each patient individually, letting them choose what they would like from the menu and serving only when patients are hungry and call in a food order. They also compost, and the newly constructed Caf is built with mostly recycled and earth-friendly materials. In addition to all of this, the hospital grounds also host several vegetable and herb gardens, including a rooftop grape arbor in the works. It's no wonder Fletcher Allen is the national leader in serving up sustainable, healthy hospital food.

While healthy food is certainly not a cure-all for our country's health, it is a hugely important foundational piece of the puzzle, especially when it comes to tackling the diseases that plague America: diabetes, heart disease, and other distinctly diet-related disorders. Fresh, healthy food in hospitals and other health institutions is crucial to establishing the precedent that healthy food leads to healthier lives.