Background:

in the last years, the gastronomy is becoming very important in the field of food. Food, in all types of collectives, is a challenge for health professionals who have the responsibility of designing, planning, scheduling and controlling the elaboration of diets. There are many factors related to intake that must be taken into account when designing the performance of the dietetic or food service: hospital resources, organizational, geographical, cultural... without forgetting the nutritional and gastronomic factors, a balance that makes the act of eating happen spontaneously and satisfactorily.

Objective:

the objective is to review the factors involved in hospital dietetics by integrating the gastronomic factor.

Methods:

it has been made a review of the main published reports, scientific articles and book chapters on hospital dietetics and gastronomy.

Conclusions:

hospital food requires more than any other nutrition and dietetic collaboration with food and cooking since both should be directed towards the same end, the correct feeding of the patients admitted, in the most pleasant culinary way possible. In hospitals, harmony among cooks, dieticians and health professionals is an exciting challenge that has a direct impact on the patient's benefit.

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