Correcting the “light-diet default”: nutrient density gaps in hospital-based postpartum nutrition services in China and system-level responses

Postpartum hospital stays in China are typically brief and highly standardized, yet they coincide with active tissue repair and, for many mothers, lactation initiation-both of which increase requirements for energy, protein, and micronutrients. In many hospitals, a culturally familiar "light diet" is adopted as the default because it is perceived as safe, well tolerated, and operationally efficient; however, when explicit nutrient specifications are absent, "light" can function as a non-clinical label that permits low nutrient density and underprovision of protein, energy, and foods that deliver key micronutrients. This Perspective examines how the "light-diet default" is produced across the care pathway-from ambiguous labeling and procurement-driven simplification to shortened menu cycles, default order sets, and monitoring practices that prioritize delivery consistency over nutritional adequacy-and argues that low nutrient density should be treated as a modifiable exposure rather than a neutral preference. Drawing on recovery-oriented postoperative nutrition principles and healthcare food-governance approaches, we propose a system-level correction that resets the default to "nutritionally adequate light." The proposed approach defines a minimum standard for postpartum meal trays, integrates dietitian input into menu specifications and exception pathways, and embeds a concise, auditable indicator set (default integrity, tray compliance, exception rate with reasons, intake proxy, and patient experience) into routine governance and contracting. Correcting defaults-rather than rejecting "light" eating-can preserve cultural acceptability while making adequacy measurable, accountable, and continuously improvable in routine postpartum care.