What and How to Feed Typhoid Patient
Typhoid fever is caused by a bacteria called salmonella typhosa. This is an infectious disease and the infection is transmitted by eating food or water that has been contaminated. Typhoid can affect people of all ages. You can ensure that you and your family don’t suffer from this infectious disease by ensuring that your surroundings are kept clean. A person suffering from Typhoid, naturally enough, becomes very weak and requires constant attention. It is absolutely imperative that his diet should be monitored carefully. A bout of typhoid fever usually leaves the patient thin, weak and exhausted. For this reason giving a high protein diet, with a high content of energy is recommended.
Diet for Typhoid Patient
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You should however not feed the patient heavily. Instead, you can give small meals at regular intervals. It is essential to ensure that the patient consumes a large amount of fluids. The main diet given to the patient should consist of food items which are soft and can be easily digested. Ensure that whatever food you give the patient is well cooked. It should be food that is bland since a typhoid patient is not allowed to eat food that is very spicy.
You can give well cooked rice that has been well mashed. Avoid giving food items like whole grain cereals since these contain a very high amount of protein which the body is unable to tolerate in the weakened condition. Fried food items should also be avoided. Whole pulses and pulses with their husks on too can be a little difficult for the patient to digest and for this reason should not feature on their diet chart. The patient should eat home cooked food and under no circumstances should he be allowed to eat food that is not prepared at home. Each patient has a different diet, based on the variety of health issues he faces. If a patient has diarrhea or other stomach disorders then the diet should be very light and should include food items like buttermilk and whey. For this very reason, it is advisable to stay away from all kinds of chutneys and preserves till the patient is completely recovered. Instead you can give the patient plenty of fruit juices. You can also add sugar to these fruit juices since they benefit a patient who is recovering from typhoid. Water too should be drunk at regular intervals during the day. In fact some physicians recommend that the patient drink at least four liters of water in a day.