Garden Spot goes for green

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Stephanie Mancha
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England-- --  The 48th Medical Support Squadron provides thousands of patients and staff with a healthier food selection during their time at the hospital, to promote a fit and healthy force.

The Garden Spot is open Mondays through Fridays for breakfast from 6:30 to 8 a.m. and for lunch from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The self-serve cafeteria offers hot and cold meals for the 48th Medical Group staff, inpatient, and outpatients.

"Our job is to promote healthy eating with proper nutrition to help patients so they are able to enhance the healing process," said Tech. Sgt. Maria German, 48th MDSS NCOIC of nutritional medicine flight.

The nutritional medicine flight team of 11 personnel manages the Garden Spot; it's the largest Nutritional Medicine Flight in United States Air Forces in Europe.

"We offer a two-week menu rotation that follows the 'Go for Green' program," said German.

The "Go for Green" program is a color-coded system that shows what's good to eat and what items should be consumed less.

"It's a way for patients and staff members to easily identify what types of foods are healthy for them."

Green items are foods that are rich in nutrients, vitamins and minerals and should be consumed often. Yellow items are a little higher in calories with less vitamins and minerals and should be consumed occasionally. Red items are high in calories and fat, may hinder performance and should be consumed rarely.

"Our registered dietician and nutrition specialists plan each meal to ensure it follows the 'Go for Green' program," said German.

"We perform a basic nutrition screening and counseling for all our patients. We tailor the food to what the patients like to eat according to prescribed diet orders," said German.

German and her team are working toward making an overall health change with their patients.

"If our patients know how to make a meal plan on their own and make the healthier choices, they learn to do it for a lifetime. It's not a diet, it's more of a lifestyle change," said German.