Nutrition for Wounds

I was wondering if anyone out there has good ideas for nutrition for helping to heal wounds. So many different products exist to help increase protein levels and suggestions for vitamin supplementation. I personally have had great luck with Juven. But its very expensive and not covered by Medi-Care. I usually suggest just fortifying regular milk with nonfat dry milk in a pinch. I even have some wound healing shake recipes that I share with my patients, that is made with this recipe, so they don't have to go out and buy expensive products. Something as simple as Carnation Instant Breakfast twice daily or milk fortified with extra nonfat dry milk can be helpful to some of our patients who are not getting proper nutrition and on a tight budget.

I though I would share a recipe for making fortified milk with everyone:

1 Quart Nonfat liquid Milk

1/4 cup Nonfat dry Milk

MIx together in pitcher to be used on the patients cereal, used in making pudding or other cooking. Nonfat Dry milk is also given out at senior nutrition food banks and the amount of milk to water can be double to enrich protein content.

Here is a shake recipe for the week:

Peanut Butter Buddy

1 cup Fortified Milk (recipe above)

4 TBSP Peanut Butter

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream or Yogurt (can use sugar-free for diabetics)

1/2 Banana

Mix Well in blender and enjoy. Also, this gives servings of fruit and milk.

Keep checking back on this one and I will add more recipes each week. Please feel free to share with us any tricks for boosting wound healing nutrition in your patients!

Have a Great Week!

Kim Davis, LVN

Tags: Diet, Nutrition, Protein

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Michael S. Miller DO on October 3, 2011 at 1:16pm

Nutrition is no longer a "Add another can of Ensure and scoop of ProMod". With so much at stake in wound healing, you simply cannot afford to guesstimate at what the patients status is nor what they need. I have started consulting specialty nutritional companies who have PharmD's, Physicians, dieticians and nutritional experts who work with my patients to assure that they are fully evaluated, the appropriate route (PO versus IV) is selected and the exact formula they need is started. CMS is so concerned over this that they have pretty specific guidelines as to what gets paid for and how. If you or anyone else on this site wants to get more information on these entities that you really, really should have involved in the care of your patients, contact me at doc@docmillers.com. I do not get one red cent for referring patients but my patients benefit and does my practice when the referring sees the results. Your patients with non-healing wounds and related conditions are almost always in some sort of nutritional deficit and getting on top of it right away assures that you get the best outcomes and your patients get the bets care.

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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Davis, LVN on October 3, 2011 at 1:51pm

Thanks so much Michael! I agree that patients always need to be evaluated further nutritionally with non-healing wounds. I am glad there are resources out there for further evaluation. Have a great week!

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Permalink Reply by Nfonkwah Joshua Ngwang on October 3, 2011 at 2:35pm

Hey Kim,

Your topic is very interesting and I am from Cameroon. We here believe that nutrition is most appropriate approach in managing terminal conditions espeically diabetes and cancer for us here since this is a resource restraint region.

I would have very much loved to contribute but my own setting is different.

Joshua

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Permalink Reply by Laurie Swezey RN, BSN, CWS,CWOCN on October 3, 2011 at 2:44pm

Hi Joshua, We would love to hear what you recommend at your facility. To post, just click on the "reply" link.

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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Davis, LVN on October 18, 2011 at 12:50pm

Hello Joshua,

I would love to hear some of your nutrition ideas. I believe here in the states if we got more "back to the basics" we would lower our incidence of these diseases, as well. Our issue here is the opposite, we eat way too much fast food and processed food. I totally agree with using nutrition to give the body what it needs to heal properly. Would love to hear some of your nutrition ideas!

Kim

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Permalink Reply by Laurie Swezey RN, BSN, CWS,CWOCN on October 3, 2011 at 2:48pm

I just came across this interesting video

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Permalink Reply by Angie A. Machado on October 3, 2011 at 2:49pm

Expense of proper nutrition can be a problem. I like the ideas that you give. I also suggest as with any disease or major healing to eat several small meals, keep the body nourished as wound healing is continuous throughout the day so we need to make sure our body has available resources to do so. Something small with some calories, fruit, yogurt, nuts, peanut butter,meat sandwich. Also, I like to make sure my client and the wound is receiving the right amount of oxygen, right diet, taking the right meds at the right time, excercise, sleep, and sunlight.

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Permalink Reply by Devorah E. Goldberg on October 3, 2011 at 3:47pm

According to macrobiotic healing and nutrition, most of us are over proteinized. As a result we're too acidic. The trick is to change blood quality and find the balance between acid and alkaline. Cooked leafy greens, reduction of animal and dairy protein help encourage that balance. Protein from beans, miso soup and quinoa is much safer and will promote the necessary protein needed for wound healing. Sugar from butternut squash, cooked carrots, and alkaline soup (equal parts carrot, onion and celery} is the answer to satisfy the taste for sweets. Introduce sea vegetables cooked in soups. I have proof that these food combinations heal. Is it difficult to change? Not if you want to be an active part of your healing. For those "holdouts", I suggest the caregiver get some recipes and introduce them without fanfare. The results are worth the effort. Devorah E Goldberg, RN,BS

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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Davis, LVN on October 24, 2011 at 12:41pm

Thanks so much Devorah! I am very interested in macrobiotic healing and nutrition. Do you have any links you could share with us for more information?

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Permalink Reply by WoundTalk on October 3, 2011 at 4:06pm

Here's an interesting article about arginine and wound healing

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Permalink Reply by Michael S. Miller DO on October 3, 2011 at 4:10pm

That "deep swab wound culture" bothers me a lot in that article, especially because the next step was the perfunctory "knee jerk" antibiotic. What effect do they think the antibiotic has on the gut flora and subsequent absorption?

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Permalink Reply by WoundTalk on October 3, 2011 at 4:14pm

I agree with you about the "deep swab culture" perhaps since the article is from 2004, things are not up to date?? my idea with the article was to introduce members to the use of arginine and wound healing.

Thanks for your input.