I'm in a hospital in Queens, NY with my dad. He is getting a platelet transfusion and I'm here for decoration ( and transport and language support). This is not my first time writing a blog about the state of our fragmented health care in this country. But something "jumped" at me this morning so I'm sharing my thoughts here.
As we were waiting for blood work I visited a cafeteria in the hospital. The food here is mostly for hospital staff with an occasional visitor passing through. It was before 9 am so lots of people were there grabbing coffee or quick breakfast.
As I was strolling around in the cafeteria - not really hungry- just looking for tea- I noticed large colorful posters and pamphlets on the walls with beautiful fruits and veggies informing the readers of their unmatched benefits. There were suggestions for " Under 100 calories healthy snacks", "How to get 9 servings of fruit and vegetables in a day" and my favorite " Eat for your health".
After I got excited to finally have found a hospital where true health is understood, I walked around the cafeteria looking for all these beautiful colorful, filled with nutrients veggies and fruits. What did I find instead of colors of the rainbow? I found lots of brown and white - breads, muffins, sausages, bacon, coffee and in the big pot ( hoping for oatmeal) I found white grits. Not a banana to be found, not one apple, not even an orange.
We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. If its a nourishing one it should be filled with vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, healthy carbohydrates, healthy protein and healthy fats. Breakfast sets the tone for the rest of the day. It keeps blood sugar stable, it keeps the cravings at bay and allows the energy to stay leveled throughout the day.
However, the only items found in the hospital cafeteria were almost exactly opposite of what a truly healthy breakfast should be.
There was no fiber- as the breads and muffins were made from processed white flour and meat and eggs have no fiber at all. There were no nutrients to speak of and I found not one item with any antioxidants or phytonutrients in it. For carbs- only the simple ones, fats- saturated fats, rancid oils and lots of cholesterol, and whatever protein there was- it was covered in fat.
I stood there dumbfounded, although not at at surprised that even here, in a hospital - everything looks great on paper but the reality is very different. Are those employees supposed to just look at those pictures of healthy foods and imagine that they are actually consuming them? Are the health care employes healthier than a general population? Are they more educated on nutrition than an average Joe?
I looked around the cafeteria and the breakdown for the staff matched the population statistics- about 1/3 of population is overweight, another 1/3 is obese and only about 1/3 is of normal weight.
Why is it still called "health care" when in reality it is "sick care". Is it because it looks better on the posters?
