Ēstprieks – for children: recover faster! 0 17

The driving force behind this important social initiative, as before, is Maxima Latvija and the Children's Hospital Foundation.

At the heart of the Ēstprieks movement is the implementation of a modern, beneficial, and specially adapted menu for young patients. This is tasty, balanced food that helps not only restore strength but also lifts the spirits of children — patients of Latvia's only children's university hospital.

What do they feed in the children's hospital?

Every year, around 15,000 children and adolescents from all over Latvia are treated in the departments of BKUS — with a wide range of diagnoses and health issues. Many of them have food intolerances or allergies, so the kitchen specialists carefully develop individually balanced dishes that help each specific child recover faster.

In recent years, the nutrition of young patients has improved significantly. Annually, the Children's Hospital prepares more than 300,000 dishes designed with seven different diets in mind — for children with diabetes, celiac disease, and other health conditions. A team of 30 people is responsible for the breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and dinners of the patients at the Children's Hospital every day.

It is clear that balanced nutrition is important for every child, but especially during the treatment process. Today, if a child finds themselves in a hospital bed, parents need not worry about the quality of food — it truly meets all modern standards of a complete diet.

Goulash soup and pancakes with strawberry jam

Quality children's nutrition, tailored to individual diets, cannot be cheap. Thanks to the support of the Ēstprieks movement, in addition to funding from the Ministry of Health, the dishes in the Children's Hospital are not only healthy but also tasty, varied — and beautifully presented.

It is also wonderful that the menu for BKUS patients is compiled for 14 days: every day, children are offered something new. It is no coincidence that over the past five years, satisfaction with the food among patients has tripled, reaching 75%.

This year, the favorite dishes of the little ones have become goulash soup, lasagna, whole grain pancakes with strawberry jam, as well as a salad of tomatoes and cucumbers with sour cream.

To draw attention to the role of nutrition in the treatment process, the Children's Hospital Foundation, Bērnu slimnīca, and Maxima Latvija launched a large-scale charitable and educational campaign Ēstprieks, which will last until November 3.

At the launch of the campaign, journalists and project partners were able to peek behind the scenes — right into the hospital kitchen. They saw how the technological process is organized, what kind of people work in the kitchen, and with what care the food is prepared here.

Believe me, everything is like in the best restaurant — only much more love and attention is put into each dish. Impeccable cleanliness, strict adherence to sanitary standards, and high quality of the products used — all of this is impressive.

The healthy eating campaign is opened by the chairman of the board of the Children's Hospital Valts Abols and the chairman of the board of the Children's Hospital Foundation Liene Dambinā. (Press photo)

Parents are interested in the recipes of hospital dishes!

"We do everything to reduce the anxiety, pain, and fear of our patients. We create a cozy environment, offer varied and tasty food, delight children with surprises prepared by our educators — all of this helps them recover.

Together with the partners of the Ēstprieks movement, we have achieved that children and parents look forward to every meal with joy. It is especially pleasant when parents ask us for recipes and change something in their family's diet after their child’s stay in the hospital.

We want healthy eating habits to form in every family, so we set an example and support our nutritionists, who tirelessly explain how to properly care for a child's nutrition every day," says the chairman of the board of BKUS Valts Abols.

"For five years now, the Ēstprieks movement has been an excellent example of how, through joint efforts, we can improve the daily lives of children in the hospital — making nutrition not only healthy but also truly tasty and joyful.

We are sincerely grateful to Maxima Latvija for creating this movement and its sustainable development, as well as to all Latvian producers who donate their products for children's lunches every year. Thanks to this support, patients at the Children's Hospital receive varied and balanced nutrition every day," emphasized Liene Dambinā, the head of the Children's Hospital Foundation, at the opening of the autumn campaign Ēstprieks.

Mission of kindness: five years together with the hospital

"At the center of Maxima Latvija's attention is caring for the families of Latvia, including the opportunity to offer every child tasty and balanced meals. Therefore, we enthusiastically became the initiators of the Ēstprieks movement, helping to bring this care to life. This initiative, created together with Bērnu slimnīca, Bērnu slimnīcas fonds, and responsible partners, not only cares for the nutrition of patients but also raises public awareness about the importance of balanced nutrition — especially for children and adolescents.

We are pleased to inspire this movement for the fifth year, providing a quality and varied menu that promotes the recovery of children and motivates families to form healthy habits at home.

We believe that every child in the hospital will look forward to their meal with joy," noted Liene Dupate-Ugale, head of communications at Maxima Latvija.

The Ēstprieks initiative was born in 2020 in collaboration with the Children's Hospital Foundation, Bērnu slimnīca, and Maxima Latvija. Its goal is to supplement state funding for nutrition by offering young patients tasty, healthy, and varied dishes based on local products. The partners of the movement — Ezerkauliņi, Mārupes siltumnīcas, Alpro, Smiltenes Piens, Balticovo, Latvijas Maiznieks, and Rēzeknes Gaļas Kombināts — help make this possible.

What can each of us do?

Anyone can support the noble Ēstprieks movement. This can be done in several ways:

— by purchasing special educational notebooks in Maxima Latvija stores and the online store Barbora;

— by transferring accumulated bonuses from the PALDIES card;

— by donating deposits through bottle return machines in Maxima Latvija stores.

For more information about the healthy eating movement Ēstprieks and ways to support it, visit www.maxima.lv/estprieks.

Find excellent healthy recipes for children at www.Estprieks.com!