Why?
At home I strive to eat only Organic, locally grown foods that are pure and of a very high vibration. Although I am not all the way vegetarian, I have cut back significantly. Furthermore the animal products I ingest are of the highest quality, grass-fed, hormone-free, antibiotic-free, no GMO, and free range. I avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup like the plague. My house is free of Trans Fats.
At first I felt like the food on my tray was going to kill me.
Dinner was clear liquid diet. I had sugary jello, salty broth, four ounce cups of fruit juice laden with high-fructose corn syrup, an 'italian ice' with more high-fructose corn syrup, and a popsicle, again, with high-fructose corn syrup. Those foods would be enough to make me throw up any given day, never mind after laparoscopic surgery! The little cans of sodas offered were also something I did not take, because they were too sweet and full of high-fructose corn syrup as well.
Here are the foods the hospital made available to me on Post-Op Day 1:
Breakfast:
sugar packet
Margarine
Creamer, nondairy
DietKit, Blue, Pkt (Equal sweetener)
Juice, Orange, 4 oz
Cereal, Raisin Bran
Milk, ReFat, 8oz
Coffee
Scrambled Eggs, 2 ounce
Sausage Link, 1 ounce
Muffin, Banana Nut
I couldn't handle ANY of it. I wanted to retch. There was a friend who brought me a loaf of french bread and some butter from a bakery across the street. Real butter. I had bread, butter, and coffee black.
Lunch:
sugar packet
Margarine
Cracker, Saltine, pkt
DietKit, Blue, Pkt
Cookie, Oatmeal Raisin
Fruit, Seasonal 4 oz
Juice, Apple, 4oz
Broth, Chicken 4 oz
Chix, Teri, Rice bowl
Veg, Carrots, 1/2 cup
Nothing was fresh. Everything was processed. The soup was too salty, and the teriyaki bowl was definitely not made by anyone remotely Japanese. I couldn't eat it.
Dinner:
Sugar packet
Cracker, Saltine, Pkt
Creamer, NonDairy
DietKit, Blue, Pkt
Garden Salad, 1 cup
Fruit, Seasonal 4 ounce
Broth Vegetable, 4 oz
Coffee, 8 oz
Chix, Marsala, Reg 3 ounce
Veg, Asprgs, Cut and tips 1/2 cup
Rice, Steamed, Reg 1/2 cup
At last I found something that could agree with me. The salad and fruit was WONDERFUL! As was the asparagus and rice. It settled well with my system. I ate part of the chicken, but not all.
Can you imagine getting this type of food if you were a diabetic? Or kidney disease where everything tastes awful in the first place and they put a limit on sodium and potassium (no O.J., no potato, no pineapple juice, no chocolate, and no tomato anything)? Have you read the disclosure by a cardiac surgeon who says the cardiac diet (low in fat and cholesterol) is responsible for the rise in obesity and diabetes* (There is an even more surprising discovery that 'grounding', direct contact with Earth, can lower risk of blood clot and high blood pressure due to electronic grounding process **) How about the poor souls who are on Ensure, either as enteral feeds (tube feeding) or supplements? Where is the life force in any of that?
If we are going to get this health care thing in order, we are definitely going to have to start with the food. I wish Alice Waters would take up this cause. She brought it to the schools. Now the institutions need our help. All this Top Chef programming on television would be so much better if attention was directed towards helping those who need it most--the weak, the sick, the Dis-Eased.
I suggest we offer ethnic based choices. Our area in Southern California has Latino and Vietnamese influence. These patients should have options for their native foods. We also have health-conscious people, who would enjoy a Whole Foods type menu. I am surprised vegetarian and vegan was not an option. It is an option on a flight, just like Kosher meals are available upon advance request of the airline.
Similarly, I was at the local British/Indian Market. I was surprised at how small the produce section is. And how highly refined most of the food products are. A huge freezer aisle of Indian and British choices. Many other foods packaged, boxed, in cans. A lot of teas, jams, chutneys, biscuits, cookies, and snacks. And very large bags of white rice.
Even the restaurant at this Indian market, with its vegan food options, had overcooked vegetables in sauces on a steam tray, and not many of them were fresh. The salad was particularly unpleasant. I had channa masala and palak paneer. I would have preferred raita over the salad. But naan is quite delicious, any way it comes.
Please note that is you are trying to heal, one of the best ways to go about this is by raising your vibration. Not just with your thoughts, but with your activities and food choices too. Even more, the vibration is increased by blessing and saying grace over the meal as one prepares to eat it.
People who are ill and in the hospital can't help but benefit from improvement in the status quo. Healers too. There are not much healthy options at the cafeteria for workers to eat when they are in the hospital. We need good food for good healing!
Namaste,
Reiki Doc
* = Dr. Dwight Lundell, Cardiac Surgeon Speaks Out View: Cardiac Surgeon-speaks-out-what-really-causes-heart-disease
** = More on Grounding speaking-grounding-gaia-look-concept…-“earthing”
Editor Update: I just saw this article TODAY--Sunday, June 1, 2014. It is dated October 2012. Enjoy! http://althealthworks.com/103/interview-million-dollar-organic-greenhouse-farmer-hopes-other-hospitals-follow-suit/
