Providers often share nutrition recommendations with patients. In spite of best intentions, sometimes these recommendations may not match latest standards or reflect evidence based studies . A survey by the Nutrition and Lifestyle Working Group of the American College of Cardiology sought to understand just how much nutrition education physicians were actually receiving during medical school and throughout their careers.

The results of this survey concluded that while nearly 70% of physicians believed that nutrition education is vital in healing process, only 57% engaged in direct discussion with their patients. Almost 25% of physicians, “recall receiving no nutrition education in medical school” and 35% said their knowledge of nutrition, “often came from a single lecture.” In residency, a shocking 73% received no nutrition education whatsoever. With nutrition being a vital aspect of the healing process, it is hard to ensure you are receiving a complete treatment plan when physicians may not have the proper education to support their recommendations.  

For Diabetes Educators, this provides a wonderful opportunity to coach our referring providers on the latest nutrition guidelines. This can be accomplished by sending brief nutrition updates to providers, inviting guest speakers who have expertise on the latest nutrition guidelines and other strategies. Since we work in interdisciplinary teams, maintaining professional respect is an important aspect for long term collaboration and growth.

With the rise of CVD, Type 2 Diabetes, and other health conditions an intervention is required. “Improving education of physicians through more comprehensive nutrition training in medical schools and advanced postgraduate training is an essential step that can facilitate improvement.”

To learn more about the lack of nutrition education in our healthcare system, visit The Deficit of Nutrition Education of Physicians.