Hartford Hospital offers patients healthy food to take home for free

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — A new plan in just Hartford Clinic is supporting persons get healthier, but not with drugs. Alternatively, it presents clients healthy food items to just take dwelling.

It appears like a tiny grocery store, but it is in fact aspect of Hartford Healthcare facility. Final week, medical professionals began referring sure sufferers right here for healthier food stuff. It’s no cost, they can take as considerably as they want, and understand some recipes, far too.

“If sufferers qualify in our place of work, they get a referral from our nutritionist,” said Dr. Jessica Mullins, Hartford Hospital’s director of gynecology. “They will get some schooling for the training piece, and they’ll get a referral to here.”

The idea is excellent diet can be just as important as medication, especially for the expecting girls Dr. Mullins treats.

“These babies, who have moms with meals insecurity, are a lot more probably to have obesity, cardiovascular sickness, as perfectly as diabetes,” Mullins said.

The COVID-19 pandemic built it crystal clear just how many people today are food items insecure. Hundreds lined up at food stuff giveaways, a lot of for the first time. The will need proceeds for numerous. Hartford clinic has partnered with Foodshare, as properly as some nearby farmers to get the foodstuff, and all of it is very good for you.

“We have olive oil alternatively of corn oil or vegetable oil,” stated David Juros, a food stuff medicine specialist with Hartford Hospital. “We have brown rice, we have full wheat pasta. Almost everything in below is healthy.”

The rationale this software is needed is not so much that people today are going hungry and not obtaining any food stuff at all. Rather, it is the actuality that the food stuff readily available in city options is largely processed foodstuff, things with sugar additional. That is why the initially factors you see in this Hartford Hospital home are clean fruits and greens.

“There is foodstuff accessible, but it’s not the healthy food stuff that we will need our individuals to have to improve their well being or their family’s health around time,” said David Fichandler, the senior director of medical functions for Hartford Clinic.

“With our prenatal sufferers, we can definitely make a substantial influence on the lifelong overall health of the moms as nicely as the babies,” Mullins mentioned.

They hope to expand to 250 people by the finish of the calendar year, but that is just the starting. Good results at Hartford Medical center may possibly signify additional healthcare facility grocery departments all above Connecticut.