title: Nutrition support is not beneficial and can be harmful in critically ill patients.
abstract: The introductory remark by Lucretius serves as a reminder that nutrient intake can have very different consequences in different subjects. In the patient with an acute or serious illness, metabolic derangements can transform a substance that is normally a source of energy into a source of metabolic toxins. The potential for organic nutrients to become organic toxins in the diseased host is a phenomenon that deserves more attention in the debate about the value of nutrition support in critically ill patients.
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
authors.forename: P L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Marino
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Finnegan
mesh_terms: D003422:Critical Care; D016638:Critical Illness / Q000628:therapy*; D002149:Energy Intake; D006801:Humans; D018529:Nutritional Support / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D016877:Oxidants; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000502:physiology; D011182:Postoperative Care
chemical_list: D016877:Oxidants