Hospital to offer protein ice cream to patients
N-ICE Cream was first offered to patients at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust as part of a trial in 2022.
It will now be rolled out more widely at the Queen's Medical Centre after Nottingham Hospitals Charity agreed to fund up to £4,800 towards supplies of the ice cream and six mini freezers to store it in.
Prof Opinder Sahota, consultant in ortho-geriatric medicine at NUH, said he was "delighted" to see N-ICE Cream move from a research study to a nutritional supplement product that is routinely offered to patients.
"When you're not very well, trying to consume a big plate of food can be quite difficult," he added
"What we also know is obviously if you don't eat, then clearly you're not going to get better.
"If you don't get better, you're going to start losing muscle and losing protein."
Prof Sahota said patients who struggled to eat were normally offered high protein nutritional supplement drinks.
However, he added that "a lot of people just don't like" them.
He told the BBC that when patients were asked what they would eat, many said "something like an ice cream would be really nice".
N-ICE Cream, manufactured for NUH by Matlock Meadows Dairy Farm, contains about 14.5g of protein and is enhanced with leucine and vitamin D.
The ice cream, which has been peer reviewed, comes in four flavours - vanilla, strawberry, salted caramel and mint.
Prof Sahota, who has driven the N-ICE Cream project, said: "This product has been specifically developed as a nutritious muscle targeted high protein ice cream, which has been designed to address the serious problem of malnutrition and muscle weakness among older people."
Nigel Gregory, chief executive of Nottingham Hospitals Charity, said he was "pleased" to be able to fund supplies of the ice cream and the fridges.
"We know that nutrition can be a challenge when caring for older patients, and we were very interested to learn about this innovative product," he added.
Follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.
'Enhanced' ice cream aimed at preventing malnutrition
Related internet links
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Medscape
6 minutes ago
- Medscape
Clinical Case: Kidney Cancer Hides in 6-mm Breast Lesion
A 54-year-old woman with a history of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) developed a metastatic lesion in her breast 6 years after radical nephrectomy. The lesion, initially detected via routine imaging, was confirmed as RCC by histopathology and immunohistochemistry. This case report by Aman Saswat Sahoo, a fourth-year Medicine & Surgery undergraduate at the University of Central Lancashire, School of Medicine and Dentistry, Preston, England, and colleagues, highlighted the need for meticulous diagnostic evaluation to distinguish between primary breast carcinoma and metastatic disease, particularly in patients with a history of RCC. The Patient and Her History The patient had a history of RCC that was initially treated with radical nephrectomy and no chemotherapy. She had undergone regular CT imaging since her surgery 3 years ago, and routine CT identified a 4-mm lesion in the lower outer quadrant of the right breast. No other relevant preexisting medical conditions were reported. Her medical, family, travel, allergy, social, and drug histories were unremarkable. Findings and Diagnosis A clinical examination revealed no palpable abnormalities in both breasts. Mammography revealed a 6-mm nodule in the posterolateral region of the right breast, which was absent on a prior mammogram conducted 4 years earlier. Ultrasound imaging confirmed the presence of a solid nodule measuring approximately 5 mm in size. Ultrasound evaluation correlated these findings with a 5-mm benign-appearing nodule. A core biopsy was performed, and histopathologic evaluation showed an inflammatory lesion, characterised by cells with clear cytoplasm and macrophages. Considering the initial diagnosis, immunohistochemical staining provided crucial diagnostic clarity, with positive results for PAX8, CD10, and MNF116 markers, confirming metastatic RCC. Given the patient's history, these findings confirmed the presence of metastatic RCC in the right breast. The patient was informed of the diagnosis of metastatic RCC in the right breast. Further assessment of distant sites and the potential for systemic therapy were discussed at this stage; however, it was later decided that no systemic interventions would be pursued. Although the lesion was considered minor in terms of surgical intervention, its identification is crucial as an indicator of metastatic disease. Wide local excision was performed after tagging the lesion with a radiofrequency identification tag located 3 mm inferior to the original site; no axillary surgery was performed. Postoperative histopathologic evaluation revealed a 5-mm well-circumscribed metastatic RCC. No vascular invasion, ductal carcinoma in situ, or lobular carcinoma in situ was identified. Discussion Although RCC is prominent in its ability to spread haematogenously, metastasis to the breast is extremely uncommon. The route for metastasis usually includes the migration of tumour cells from the kidneys through the inferior vena cava to the right ventricle of the heart. From here on, they enter the pulmonary circulation and eventually reach the breast. Breast metastasis from RCC is exceedingly rare, with fewer than 60 cases documented in the literature. Although the risk for RCC recurrence is highest within the first 2 years following treatment, metastases to uncommon sites, such as the breast, have been reported even a decade after the initial diagnosis and surgical intervention. 'The limited information available in the literature regarding optimal treatment strategies and patient outcomes for RCC metastasis to the breast highlights the need for further studies to better understand this condition,' the authors wrote.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Resident doctors strike in the face of a tiring public
Up to 50,000 NHS resident doctors are currently on strike over pay, their twelfth walkout since March 2023. So what? This month Labour announced an ambitious plan meant to revive a health service that is on its knees. Any detail from that has now been overtaken by a downing of tools that will severely disrupt medical treatments; could encourage similar action by nurses; and may lead to patient deaths. Here we go again. Ending resident doctor strikes was one of the health secretary Wes Streeting's first priorities. Last year he struck a deal with the British Medical Association to increase pay by 22 per cent. This was a temporary boost, since it only applied to 2023-25 salaries. For 2025-26, the rise was 5.4 per cent. Not good enough. This is better than the 3.6 per cent pay rise awarded to nurses in June 2025. But the BMA wants full 'pay restoration'. It says the salaries of resident doctors, who are still in training, are 21 per cent lower in real terms than in 2008 because of inflation. Damned statistics. The BMA uses the Retail Price Index (RPI) to reach this number. The government uses another measure, the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is the official metric used to calculate changes to the cost of living, based on a basket of consumer goods. If CPI is used, pay has only fallen by 4.7 per cent since 2008, according to the Nuffield Trust. Hang on. The BMA's insistence on using RPI is based, in part, on the fact that the government uses it to calculate rail fares and interest payments on student debt. The latter is particularly relevant. Although they earn a relatively high salary after 5 years in training (£61,825 a year, excluding compulsory overtime), doctors emerge from five years of medical school owing as much as £100,000. Ouch. That's nearly double the average debt pile of British graduates. Unlike many other professionals, medical trainees also spend thousands of pounds on exam fees and courses. Another thing. Pay isn't the only grievance, with resident doctors also complaining about a shortage of speciality training posts, which means many get stuck on the middle rungs of the career ladder; an arcane placement system that requires them to move around the country at a few months' notice; and gruelling hours and stressful working conditions. Cash-strapped. This time round, the health secretary is less sympathetic and says there is no more money for pay rises. Last year's increases ate up more than half of the extra £10.4 billion given to the NHS. Streeting would rather be getting on with plans to revamp the health system. These are centred around shifting care from hospitals to the community; making better use of digital tech; and preventing sickness in the first place. Shifting opinions. The public seems to be on his side. In 2024, more than half of Brits supported strike action by trainee doctors. This has fallen to 32 per cent. The head of the Royal College of Nursing has said it is 'grotesque' to hand doctors bigger increases than nurses. Negotiations. In an unsuccessful bid to avert the strikes, Streeting made several last-minute offers, including accelerating doctors' training so they progress through the pay scales faster; giving them part of their pensions upfront; and subsidising exam fees. The toll. Previous rounds of strikes led to the cancellation of 1.5 million planned appointments, as well as five deaths. Labour is eager to avert more cancellations, having made much of bringing down waiting lists. NHS England has not postponed scheduled non-urgent care. What's more… The BMA has criticised this decision, saying it puts lives at risk. Critics have pinned the responsibility on them, saying they chose to strike. Either way, patients will suffer.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
'The air was so dangerous in my Birmingham postcode I ended up on life support'
A Birmingham resident who lived near the city's landmark motorway, the Spaghetti Junction, has revealed how she ended up on life support. Named only as Jenny, the 75-year-old woman said she 'never realised how dangerous the air was' until she was hospitalised with life-threatening pneumonia. Traffic fumes and poor housing conditions were to blame for her deteriorating health, doctors told her at the time. Living next to the busiest motorway in Europe, she also found herself suffering regular asthma attacks just from stepping outside. Read more: Couple who starved their dog told RSPCA inspectors she was 'given to them by drug dealers' The retiree found her health drastically improved when she moved nearer to green spaces and away from the motorway. Speaking as part of a new Health Equals campaign this week, she said: 'I never realised just how dangerous the air I was breathing every day really was, I used to live near Spaghetti Junction, and would suffer regular asthma attacks just from stepping outside my door. "It wasn't until I ended up in hospital with pneumonia and on life support that doctors told me the traffic fumes and my poor housing conditions were to blame. "Everyone deserves clean air – not just those lucky enough to live near green spaces or away from busy roads. My health improved dramatically after I moved and started walking in parks. But not everyone has that choice." Her experience with air pollution comes as Health Equals, a coalition of 85 organisations, revealed World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guidelines were breached in 35,000 neighbourhoods across Britain. Its report also outlined all 506 schools in Birmingham were in neighbourhoods failing the guidelines, putting 290,000 children at risk of serious long term health problems, including heart disease and stroke. The new findings are being released as part of Health Equals' Make Health Equal campaign, to highlight alarming health inequalities: where toxic air, alongside other issues including poor income, unstable jobs and unsafe homes, are contributing to an alarming 16-year gap in life expectancy across the UK. Health Equals is calling for a cross-government strategy that prioritises action on these essential building blocks of health, to stop lives being cut short. City environment boss Coun Majid Mahmood said: "Poor air quality is a major risk to public health, and that is why we are committed to improving the city's air through our clean air strategy. 'Data published in October 2023 showed that our work to address the air pollutant, nitrogen dioxide, is delivering results, with pollution levels in Birmingham city centre slashed by almost 40 per centr since 2016, driven in part by the introduction of the Clean Air Zone. 'Across the city, a dedicated air quality monitoring programme of potential 'hotspots' in Birmingham has found that all sites are within the annual mean air quality objective. This three year monitoring project concluded in 2024 and sought to identify any locations where concentrations of nitrogen dioxide might exceed the annual mean air quality objective. I am pleased to confirm our evidence suggests that outside of the city centre area, air quality concentrations are within legal limits. 'We also monitor particulate matter, both coarse and fine fractions (PM10 and PM2.5), and all of our sites continue to show compliance with legal limits set by Government. We will continue to work with Government to further drive down concentrations of fine particles as we know these are the largest risk to health and we have extended our monitoring network to this end. 'This is supported by our mission to install year-round air monitoring equipment in schools a key component in this. These monitors come in tandem with accompanying education resources and lesson plans helping to inspire a new generation of Clean Air champions. Our work in this area is underpinned further by projects like 'Car Free School Streets', which seeks to reduce emissions during rush hour, driven by readings from council monitoring data showing that the school gates are among the most polluted parts of the city. 'The school sensor programme has the co-benefit of providing monitoring data for fine particulate matter, recognised as a key pollutant in a range of adverse health outcomes such as heart disease, lung diseases and cancers. 'Furthermore, surplus revenues from the Clean Air Zone are feeding directly into our transport plan, enabling us to work in partnership with the West Midlands Combined Authority to support schemes related to active travel, improve public transport infrastructure, and manage demand in the city centre. 'Projects funded by Clean Air Zone revenues include a trial of hydrogen buses, upgrades to the University railway station and new stations on the Camp Hill line, as well as a number of projects within the Cross-City Bus scheme, the expansion of the Car Free School Streets programme, and development of the next phase of the Birmingham Cycle Revolution. Community grants for projects delivering against our priorities have also been provided through the Environment and Transport Neighbourhoods Fund (ETNF). 'Our work towards our clean air objectives continues with the recent launch of a consultation into the renewal of the city's Smoke Control Order, offering greater powers of enforcement against those who breach guidelines. This is just the latest step in our journey, which will not stop until we have achieved our objective of clean air for all residents.' Have you been affected by this. We would like to hear from you. You can contact us by emailing us on
