Let Them Eat! Comparing a Neutropenic Diet to a Food Safety Based Diet in Patients Undergoing Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT)

Neutropenic diets were adopted as a way to decrease the infection risks in immunocompromised individuals, however there have been limited studies evaluating the infection rates of the neutropenic diet compared to a food safety based diet in a pediatric population following HSCT. Neutropenic diets result in significant restriction in the variety and types of foods an individual may eat resulting in adverse effects on a patient's quality of life. Our hypothesis was that the adoption of a food safety based diet (CCHMC BMT diet) would result in greater patient and parent satisfaction, improved quality of life, and improved oral intake without an increase in infection risks.