Hospitals are devoted to rest and recovery from illness, so I was shocked when I visited one recently to find its shop actively promoting ill health.

Rows upon rows of crisps, sweets, chocolates and even bags of refined sugar were on display, beside a large chilled cabinet filled with sugary and artificially-sweetened soft drinks.

Racks offering different varieties of Pot Noodles containing monosodium glutamate and other synthetic niceties added insult to injury.

Eventually, I managed to find what I was looking for, a fruit section the size of a postage stamp, containing the grand total of three lonely bananas. According to shop staff, apples aren't on sale and grapes are "way too expensive".

I was briefly tempted to attach a "Keep Out - Content Hazardous!" sign to the shop door but decided I might be detained until further notice in the psychiatric ward.

My pleas of 'But you must listen to me, I'm a nutritionist,' would be met with patient stoicism and a hefty dose of tranquillisers.

Once settled into the routine of institutional care and cuisine, my finely-tuned blood sugar levels would unbalance themselves and my digestive system, not used to large amounts of refined carbohydrates, would begin to clog up.

Then, as sure as night follows day, those forgotten cravings would start to haunt me again and I would gaze longingly at the rows of chocolate bars inside what had become my ultimate nemesis, the hospital shop.

Before I get completely carried away, let us turn to a very real and inspiring story.

Famous doctor Max Bircher-Benner, born in Switzerland in 1867, pioneered a system of healthcare based largely on living foods.

He realised that the doctors of his age knew little about the relationship between diet and health when he fell ill with jaundice.

He was unable to digest food properly until his wife put a slice of fresh apple into his mouth.

He was surprised to find he could tolerate it and several days later, having munched his way through many apples, he had completely recovered.

Apples are a well-known aid for improving detoxification, digestion and circulation, and they form the basis of a delicious breakfast dish invented by the physician and called Birchermuesli.

Dr Bircher-Benner would have been horrified to see our modern-day hospital tuckshop, an Aladdin's cave full of gilded tat.

The items bear no resemblance to 'real' food but their shine mesmerises and confuses the customer, and they have proven adverse effects on human health.

We may have more consumer choice than ever before, but I'm not sure it should be applied to what we eat. If we value food and treat its origins with respect, health is a more likely result than disease.

Research tells us vegetables reduce the risk of cancer and that essential fatty acids protect the brain and reduce the risk of degenerative disease such as diabetes.

If we allow our foods to continue to degrade in nutrient content we have no right to complain about the shoddy quality of our lives.

If you have a question for Martina, email features@theargus.co.uk
Martina is a qualified nutritional therapist at the Crescent Clinic of Complementary Medicine and the Dolphin House Clinic, Brighton. For more details visit www.thehealthbank.co.uk