why do hospitals serve such bad food?

Question

when serving healthy food should be one of their main priorities?

Answer 1

The food is healthy.
I agree with the second answerer that, when you are preparing food for large numbers of people, it can't always be "gourmet". But hospital food is very nutritious, and carefully planned for the needs of the patients.

Answer 2

I found, while visiting some hospitals, that they do serve unhealthy food in cafeterias but I think more hospitals today are offering a few healthy choices also. I have a problem, though, when patients with heart problems are served fat food albeit with a little side salad or some beans etc.

This is why I believe this occurs: the cafeteria food, first of all, is meeting the wishes of most people. The choices people make, against the best advice, show they love lots of fat, salt etc, and desserts with a lot of cream, fiberless pastries etc. This is also how they shop at the grocery store. The fare at a hospital cafeteria points to the reason why heart disease and cancers account for most of our deaths - we make really poor dietary choices as a nation.

The hospital staff may have learned about healthy food while medical students, but it is not the main direction of their studies. Our health industry long ago opted to go the way of treating symptoms rather than curing diseases, and administering drugs, aggressive surgeries etc. Don t look for much emphasis on healthy living. The med students imbibe enough info to get through the courses and get certified but are likely skeptical about healthy food, or else optimistic regarding unhealthy food.

The patients themselves would often kick up a ruckus if they were given really healthy food, but I think they should be given the option. Do no harm, doctors and medical staff!

Answer 3

the more the food tastes bad the better for the hospital more turn around on the rooms/beds. the more revenue coming in. so if they served good food people would not to go home they would find other reasons to stay in the hospital. so bad food helps the insurance companies, and helps the hospital with less liability for something going wrong during the patients visit. get my picture a conspiracy once again.

Answer 4

Is it bad because of your diet when your in there? cause sometimes your doctor tells them what to give you to eat and if your on any kind of diet then thats what you will get ! So people blame the hospital for bad food when really it's what there doctor ordered for them to have , I would say ! But if your not in the hospital and you eat there ordering your own food then most of it shouldn't be to bad. They should have soups made and hamburgers there that wouldn't be so bad and if they are then i would blame the people who cook it !! And maybe even let the hospital know about it !!!

Answer 5

It's bland due to lack of seasoning due to all the various diets. So when the patients get their food they add whatever seasoning they're allowed.
If I'm sick enough to be in the hospital I'm not usually very hungry anyway so it never bothered me. At least I didn't have to cook for a change. LOL

Answer 6

They must mass produce it that is why it's bad. They try to serve a balanced meal and if they didn't cook the veggies until they were mush maybe some people would eat it. I also think most of their fruits and veggies are canned, its much cheaper and easier to open a can than to peel and chop up real fruit and veggies.

Answer 7

it has to be generic to serve 500 people at the same time, so they have to serve basically a meal that everyone could eat (there are exceptions, though)

Answer 8

No extra sodium (salt)added, that enhances the "flavour" in your dish.

Answer 9

I don't know...I was at a hospital once that had a McDonalds. . .

Answer 10

Because if it were good nobody would want to leave