As the general public has become more aware of advances in nutrition, consumer demands for advice on matters of diet and disease have grown. This book offers recommendations to upgrade what were found to be largely inadequate nutrition programs in U.S. medical schools in order that health professionals be better qualified to advise and treat their patients. A comprehensive study of one-third of American 4-year undergraduate medical schools provided information on the current status of nutrition programs at each school. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations made from analysis of this gathered information. Questions examined in this volume include: Has medical education kept pace with advances in nutrition science? Are medical students equipped to convey sound nutritional advice to their patients? What strategies are needed to initiate and sustain adequate teaching of nutrition in medical schools?

Contents

• Committee on Nutrition in Medical Education
• Food and Nutrition Board
• Preface
• 1. Executive Summary
  • Conclusions And Recommendations
• 2. Historical Perspective
  • Early Nutrition Research And Medical Education
  • The Golden Age of Nutrition
  • Decline Of The Golden Age
  • Resurgence Of Interest In Nutrition In Medical Education
  • Public And Professional Awareness
  • A Public Policy Issue
  • Nutrition In Medical Education Abroad
  • Summary
  • References
• 3. Rationale for Including Nutrition Instruction in Medical Education
  • Evidence Associating Nutrition With Disease Prevention And Health Promotion And Maintenance
  • Nutritional Needs Of Selected Population Subgroups And The General Public
  • Nutrition And Acute Care
  • Supplemental Feeding Techniques
  • Drug-Nutrient And Nutrient-Nutrient Interaction
  • The Team Approach To Patient Care
  • Summary
  • References
• 4. Current Programs
  • Surveys Of Medical School Curricula
  • Nutrition Education Programs At Selected Medical Schools
  • Medical Student Opinion
  • National Board Examinations
  • Funding Of Nutrition Research And Research Training
  • Summary
  • References
• 5. Curriculum Guideline for Incorporating Nutrition in Medical Education
  • Energy Balance
  • Role Of Specific Nutrients
  • Nutrition In The Life Cycle
  • Nutritional Assessment
  • Protein Energy Malnutrition
  • The Role Of Nutrition In Disease Prevention And Treatment
  • Possible Risks From Poor Dietary Practices
  • Social And Cultural Factors That Influence Dietary Practices
  • References
• 6. Conclusions and Recommendations
• Appendixes
  • Appendix A U.S. Medical Schools Surveyed by the Committee and Their Characteristics
  • Appendix B Survey of Medical School Deans and Associate Deans
  • Appendix C Survey of Medical School Nutrition Course Coordinators
  • APPENDIX D Personal Interview Survey of Nutrition Course Coordinators
  • Appendix E Speakers at Various Committee Meetings
  • Appendix F Testimony of the American Medical Student Association: Nutrition Education in the Undergraduate Medical Curriculum
  • Appendix G Nutrition Science Content of National Board Examinations

The work on which this publication is based was supported by the Ruth Mott Fund, the William H. Donner Foundation, and the National Research Council (NRC) Fund, a pool of private, discretionary, nonfederal funds that is used to support a program of Academy-initiated studies of national issues in which science and technology figure significantly. The NRC Fund consists of contributions from a consortium of private foundations including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Charles E. Culpeper Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; the Academy Industry Program, which seeks annual contributions from companies that are concerned with the health of U.S. science and technology and with public policy issues with technological content; and the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering endowments.

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.

The Research Council was established by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and of advising the federal government. The Research Council operates in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy under the authority of its congressional charter of 1863, which establishes the Academy as a private, nonprofit, self-governing membership corporation. The Research Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in the conduct of their services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. It is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. The National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine were established in 1964 and 1970, respectively, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences.