Steven L. Snodgrass, MD, FACS is a former Chief of Surgery at HCA Greenview Hospital in Bowling Green, Kentucky. University of Kentucky College of Medicine: 1980-1984 Surgical Resident Greenville Hospital System, Greenville South Carolina: 1984-1988 Chief Resident General Surgery, Greenville Hospital System: 1989 Private Practice General/Vascular Surgeon: 1989-2004, which included two years as Chief of Surgery Fellow of the American College of Surgeons Member of the American Medical Association Author of books, both fiction and non-fiction, as well as medical/surgical articles. Married to Mary Lee Snodgrass, a registered pharmacist since 1984. Has two sons, Jack, 27 and Lee, 23. Jack is a professional baseball pitcher in the San Francisco Giants Organization, (AAA Sacramento). Lee begins law school this fall at Washington University in St. Louis. 3rd degree black belt in ARC-RYU (form of martial arts) Avid bicyclist I retired from a very busy surgical practice, because I recognized a significant problem which had to be solved. It is found not only in the general population, but it is also harming patient care to the point of causing complications, and even death. The problem is protein malnutrition. Being a surgeon and the father of a professional athlete, I realized how difficult it was to obtain a convenient, great-tasting protein snack. Carbohydrates are easy to find, but not lean protein which can be eaten on-the-go. Dr. Steve’s Nutri Snax were created for this reason. The product is also Gluten-Free and non-GMO. I worked with some of the most talented people in the food industry to make this become reality. Sure, the product is great for athletes and/or anyone looking for healthier snack choices, but I saw where the REAL NEED is present: PATIENTS. All patients need extra protein to help them heal properly. Some of the patient groups where a special focus was placed include: post-operative; geriatric medicine/long-term care; chronic wound care; renal/failure dialysis; diabetes/pre diabetes; Celiac Disease; bariatric; anorexia/bulimia; and cardio-vascular, etc.). All of these patient groups will no doubt reap the benefits of my protein snack, but the main area of concentration has been cancer patients. Protein malnutrition leads to increased morbidity, mortality, complications and healthcare costs in every patient group, but none are as severely, negatively impacted as patients diagnosed with cancer. Protein malnutrition in the cancer patient is much more costly in every respect. In my lifetime, I have been involved in thousands of cancer cases, and my mom is an ovarian-cancer survivor. Cancer has profoundly affected both my professional and personal life. I promised myself to do something about solving cancer patient protein needs, and this snack has now been created for that purpose. I have involved myself with clinical research and the use of my product in all the aforementioned patient care groups, especially cancer care centers including both hospital inpatients and outpatient clinics. In no instance has any patient not been able to tolerate my product. No one became ill. No nausea, vomiting or diarrhea occurred as often seen with liquid forms of nutrition; period. Even patients with mouth ulcers or having the inability to chew food, simply dissolved the product under their tongues to receive the benefits of the protein. My ultimate goal is to bring the dangers of protein malnutrition to the forefront of consciousness to patients, their families, and my colleague caregivers, so no one, or no family will have to watch themselves or one of their loved ones waste away because they couldn’t eat enough protein. Protein malnutrition can be prevented in a significant number of cases. We simply must do better. Most certainly, there will be cases, many of them, where patients will not have a satisfactory outcome. Some, we know will succumb to their disease, and this is very disheartening. This being said, in the not-too-distant future, we will provide this protein source as a choice patients otherwise would not receive. My plan is to do everything possible to give patients a fighting chance not only to survive, but thrive and ultimately, return to wellness.
