What to eat while hospitalized

[robtkatz]

Owing to a major surgical error on a minor procedure, I now need major surgery to bypass the damage the first guy created. It'll require hospitalization for at least a couple of days. I've been doing pretty good on my own with the thyroid diet, working on it for almost 3 months now.

But what do I do in the hospital? I've got to eat, and I'm sure that the only thing available to eat in the hospital is quite harmful, maybe negating all the progress I made. I can't sneak in milk, it'll go bad sitting there. I think orange juice will keep unrefrigerated, so will some hard cheese and carrots. I can take a jar of collagen powder and some sugar too, and a little coconut oil. It'd be neat if I could bring in some cooked potatoes slathered in butter. I don't know if I can sneak all this in. But the lack of milk will be a big thing. Will any supplements provide some protection in case I can't cater my hospital stay?

I need some suggestions.

Thank you,

---Robert

 

[Blossom]

Hospitals usually have a refrigerator designated for patients who bring in food. The staff will put a label on your food with your name and the date and time. Some places require food be eaten or thrown away within a specific time frame. I would check before you go on the specifics of the hospital you will be at. They also have milk it's just conventional with added vitamins in the US but if that doesn't bother you it would be one less thing to worry about. Best of luck. You might want to request saline instead of lactate ringers for your IV fluids. Haidut posted about his wife's experience with this and the metabolic burden created from the lactated ringers solution as compared to hypertonic saline. It's an informative post. Sorry I'm not able to link at this time.

 

[BingDing]

I think about those kind of problems all the time. Like a trip to Nova Scotia next summer, I don't want Canadian milk so I'll fly me and my cooler to Maine, buy raw milk locally then rent a car and drive.

A small cooler and those freezer packs would certainly keep milk safe for a few days. Hospitals aren't prisons despite the attitude. Always maintain the right to act on your own determinism and you should be able to negotiate suitable terms.

And no lactates (or citrates) is excellent advice, NaCl only.

 

[loess]

Haidut posted about his wife's experience with this and the metabolic burden created from the lactated ringers solution as compared to hypertonic saline. It's an informative post. Sorry I'm not able to link at this time.

Here is a link to that topic. Hadn't seen that before, thanks for referencing it.

I've actually been thinking about this kind of scenario and need to find some time to write up some sort of document to leave with loved ones who ostensibly would be responsible for decisions related to my health in the event of an emergency or accident that left me weakened/unconscious. I keep a jar of honey with me pretty much at all times; I would think that it would be an easy and stable source of sugar to have in a hospital situation. You may want to bring along some form of Vitamin E to protect against any PUFA that you might consume.

Is there any legitimacy to the idea that coconut water can be safely used as an IV drip? I remember hearing such statements in raw foodist circles years ago...something about the pH of coconut water matching closely to the pH of human blood.