I'm sorry if this has been covered a hundred times already, but didn't find much in the quick look I took at my forum search results....
Any suggestions for healthy eating while neutropenic? My ANC is 300 (had horse ATG Thanksgiving weekend), and I know I'm at risk for all sorts of infections until I get that number closer to 1000. Right now, I'd sell my right arm (the left one has my PICC line and I ain't giving that up!) for a green leafy salad or some other fresh vegetables. But, I get the impression that anything fresh is to be avoided like the plague because of the potential for contamination. (I found one neutropenic diet online that actually said avoid salads, but Twinkies were okay).
In the hospital, I was able to order salad because their kitchen was using some special washing procedure that's been tested at Fred Hutchinson in Seattle. Looking at the ingredient list of the product the hospital uses, it contains acetic acid, basically very strong vinegar. I'm not sure regular ol' vinegar would give the same results. Besides, isn't vinegar "mother" some sort of bacteria?
I've been buying a lot of fresh frozen veggies, but I'm running out of flavor combinations. Should we have chopped broccoli, or maybe some Oriental mix with brocolli and snow peas? How 'bout some broccoli stems? You get the picture. I've tried mixing the broccoli in with lentils and brown rice, but it's just not the same without a splash of Shoyu to flavor the rice.
Anyone have any suggestions? Am I still weeks away from some rabbit food? Thanks for any ideas you may have.
Joyce (mtngal)