One of the most common respiratory diseases that occurs in the population is pneumonia. More than a million children die from pneumonia every year in the world. In Russia, every five years, one out of four people get this disease. In America, about 3 million people suffer pneumonia each year. Hospitalization is required 4 times more often for patients over 65 years old than for other patients. Most often, children under 5 years of age and older people over 65 are sick.
Insidious pneumonia
Unfortunately, the mortality rate from simple pneumonia is 5%, and before the use of the antibiotic penicillin in the treatment process, 83% of patients died. Today, the situation with the treatment of this common, but quite insidious disease has improved significantly. But, as before, a considerable part of the country's population becomes victims of pneumonia.
Depending on the etiology of the disease, the bodyâs ability to resist, and the severity, the patientâs reaction to pneumonia may be different. Infectious microorganisms adversely affect not only vulnerable lung tissue, but also other organs. The cardiovascular system is especially affected by pneumonia. A properly selected diet for pneumonia in both adults and children will give a positive result and increase the effectiveness of treatment. Adequate nutrition will reduce the general intoxication of the body, inflammation, support the work of the cardiovascular system and digestive tract - and this is very important for a depleted body that needs to maintain strength to fight the disease.
The treatment of pneumonia is carried out comprehensively, using modern antibiotics and pulmonary drugs. However, scientists have long proved the connection between human nutrition and well-being, so the diet for pneumonia is increasingly prescribed by doctors.
When is a diet effective?
In diseases of the respiratory system, the therapeutic nutrition of children and adults is determined, first of all, by the severity of the patient's condition and intoxication of the respiratory tract. Of course, the diet for pneumonia in a person with a temperature of 39 ° C and a general critical condition is ineffective, at least because the patient in this state is practically unable to eat. If we are talking about a stable state, then the emphasis on nutrition will become an assistant in the struggle for health.
Diet number 11
It is no secret that all medical diets have their own serial number. The diet number for pneumonia is 11. And this table contains all the products necessary for a speedy recovery. By the way, a diet with the same number is prescribed for tuberculosis. The total calorie content of this treatment table is 3500 kcal and is achieved due to the high protein content. Before starting a diet, doctors recommend making a cleansing enema or using a more gentle method of cleansing the body - a laxative.
Diet for pneumonia
In the conditions of a severe course of the disease in the first few days, it makes sense to focus on a liquid diet, which will be based on:
- Still mineral water.
- Weak poultry or low fat broths.
- Sweet tea with lemon.
- Low-fat dairy products.
- Freshly squeezed vegetable and fruit juices.
- Rosehip broth.
In the future, you can diversify the diet by adding to the menu soups based on meat or vegetable broths with the addition of pasta, oatmeal, semolina and rice groats.
Then, boiled fish and meat soufflĂŠ, soft-boiled eggs, curd with cream, baked apples and fruit or vegetable purees are added to the patientâs food.
In order for the body to have enough strength to fight the infection, it must receive enough protein. Calculating the required amount is simple - 1 gram of protein per 1 kilogram of the patientâs body weight. At the same time, it is very important to maintain a balance of fats - about 60 percent of fats must be of animal origin (butter, cheese, milk, eggs, lean meat, fish, etc.). If the course of the disease is severe, and the patient is forced to observe bed rest, then the total calorie intake must be reduced to 1900-2100 kcal.
If the diet is followed for pneumonia, the table should be varied, but not plentiful. It is critically important to reduce salt intake, enrich the diet with vitamins A and C, and establish an adequate drinking regime. An organism suffering from intoxication simply needs a sufficient amount of fluid - from one and a half to two liters per day. Drinks containing a sufficient amount of ascorbic acid will become especially relevant during the treatment of pneumonia. These are teas with sugar and lemon, broths of wild rose, sweet and sour fruit juices.
Sour-milk drinks as part of a therapeutic diet for pneumonia will help restore the intestinal microflora of the patient. General recommendations are fractional nutrition, easily digestible foods that do not cause constipation or bloating, and no fried foods. Weakened sick food is best served in pureed form.
Diet during recovery
As soon as the patient's condition improves, or if the disease progressed easily enough, you can follow the principles of proper nutrition, focusing on calcium and additional vitamins. In this case, it is important to exclude heavy for digestion and fatty foods. In order to stimulate the patient's lack of appetite, you can resort to the help of products such as caviar, ham, cheese, pickled or pickled vegetables, spices. It makes sense to add a small amount of quality dry wine to the diet, which also has a very positive effect on increasing appetite.
What diet for pneumonia will help the child?
The therapeutic nutrition of children with pneumonia should also be aimed at preventing the side effects of medications prescribed by doctors - especially sulfa drugs and antibiotics. Foods rich in B vitamins, such as buckwheat and oatmeal, meat, fish, yeast, and whole-wheat bread, do a good job of this task. A good anti-inflammatory effect is provided by the inclusion of foods in the childâs diet that contain a sufficient amount of calcium salts - cottage cheese, cheese, milk, lettuce, cabbage and figs. As in the case of adults, the intoxication of the body is well reduced by the introduction of a sufficient amount of liquid and vitamin C.
As a rule, children eat poorly in the early days of the disease. There is no way to force a little patient. In the early days, drinking plenty of fluids is similar to drinks that are part of an adult diet.
The diet for pneumonia for children is generally the same as for adults, but there are some differences that should not be forgotten:
- Low-fat meat broths, which form the basis of the diet in diet No. 11 for adults, are strictly prohibited for children under one and a half years old. The fact is that the broth contains many so-called extractive substances that are released from meat during cooking. The childâs body may not be able to cope with their digestion, so it is better to exclude them from the childâs therapeutic diet. Vegetables broths are great for kids.
- The second ban in the diet is honey. It is forbidden to sweeten drinks with honey if the child is under the age of three. Upon reaching this age, honey can be included in the diet.
Prohibited Products
It is strictly forbidden to use the following products for pneumonia:
- Sausages and canned food.
- Fat cream, milk, cheese.
- Mushrooms, legumes, onions, garlic, cucumbers, white cabbage, radish.
- Chocolate, pastry, rough-skinned fruit.
- Strong tea, coffee, cocoa and alcohol.
Menu for a patient with pneumonia
Breakfast - green hour with lemon and honey (sugar), 200 g semolina porridge in non-fat milk.
The second breakfast is a glass of a weak broth of wild rose, an omelet from 2 chicken eggs.
Lunch - a cup of low-fat meat broth, 200 g of boiled poultry, as a side dish 150 g of mashed potatoes, a glass of lingonberry juice.
Afternoon snack - 250 g of low-fat cottage cheese seasoned with yogurt, baked apple, tea.
Dinner - 300 g of vegetable salad seasoned with sunflower oil, a glass of low-fat kefir.
A well-designed diet will allow the body suffering from pneumonia to provide sufficient support during the period of the disease. Over time, the food regimen is enriched with healthy products, and the disease recedes completely.