The House of Culture of Dénia hosted the 'I Conference on Clinical Nutrition' of the Hospital HLA San Carlos, organized by Dr. Marco Lattur, Medical Director of the center. The event brought together 10 specialists in internal medicine, general surgery and obesity and diabetes, endocrinology, clinical psychology, nutrition and speech therapy, with the aim of updating knowledge on diagnosis and treatments against malnutrition in hospitalized patients and obesity.
"Broadly speaking, clinical nutrition is the discipline that deals with treating patients who suffer from diseases or situations in which an adequate diet is part of their treatment, both in the hospital setting and in the home.", Says Dr. Mafé, internist, coordinator of the Nutrition Unit of HLA San Carlos. "It is important to emphasize that this discipline does not only have a curative approach, but also a preventive one, that is why it is important to train professionals and allocate more means to prevent entities such as malnutrition or obesity, to avoid having to treat them later".
Several studies have been published that position malnutrition in hospitalized patients between an 30 and an 50%. "Identifying this malnutrition becomes essential to avoid or minimize the repercussion that this may have on the clinical evolution of patients. It is demonstrated that malnutrition is associated with greater complications, longer hospital stay, higher re-entry rates and even with an increase in mortality"Says HLA internist San Carlos. Undernutrition leads to a loss of quality of life, both for patients and their families, as well as an increased cost for institutions and society. "Professionals must be proactive in the screening, diagnosis and establishment of an early treatment of malnutrition," explains the Coordinator of the Nutrition Unit.
Malnutrition: the challenge of an attractive menu for the senses
'Hospital food' is used as a qualifying adjective of something non-appetizing. But in the hospitals there are several menus and diets, so they must collect the guidelines of a varied and healthy diet, in addition to medical criteria in which the pathology is established, the role of the diet associated with it and who suffers from it . There is usually a basal diet and modifications in order to adapt it to the clinical picture of the admitted patient.
Dr. Mafé explains that "In some patients with difficulty swallowing (dysphagia), it is also important to adapt the texture of the diet to prevent the food from going to the respiratory tract instead of the digestive tract, with the risk of complications that this entails" In this way, the health personnel prescribe the proper diet and the cook prepares a dish with the therapeutic and organoleptic guidelines necessary to the case.
"From the Institutions we must work to make the food attractive to the senses, be a pleasant moment of the day and represent a comfortable element in the patient's hospital life", Argues the Coordinator of the Nutrition Unit of HLA San Carlos, and even that"After discharge, it is important that the patient follow the dietary recommendations prescribed by their doctor to promote recovery. In some cases, oral supplements may be prescribed to benefit recovery after malnutrition".
Obesity is a disease, and it can be prevented
Overweight in children and obesity in adults increases at a disturbing rate, since the numbers worldwide are around 1.500 millions of overweight people and 500 millions of obese. In the 1st Nutrition Conference of HLA San Carlos, they also addressed this problem of our century and that especially affects Western society.
"Both overweight and obesity are associated with an increase in chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular accidents and diabetes", Explains Dr. Mafé and argues that"a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle habits such as exercise, emotional well-being and a good rest are the key to success in maintaining a healthy weight. And in some selected cases, when the diet fails, bariatric surgery can be a great ally".
The professional of HLA San Carlos relates that this situation adds that "At this time of the year, with the arrival of the summer season, the appearance of 'miracle diets' that have no scientific evidence and pose a risk to health are frequent. If you want to start a diet, you must go to a qualified specialist, because obesity is preventable and in our hands is to avoid all this new epidemic".
Contact Hospital San Carlos Grupo HLA
| Nancy Street, 3-5 View in Google Maps | |
| (966) 470 162 | |
| Only by appointment: 965 17 47 37 | |
| Appointment by Whatsapp: 679144005 | |
| From Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 20 p.m. Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 14 p.m. (General medicine and nursing). Emergencies in Hospital San Carlos Dénia. | |
| grupohla.com | |
| hospitalsancarlos.es | |
| HLAGHospital Group | |
| "Salud" |
