Nutrition Education in Medicine: An Australian Framework

Suboptimal diet is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity and the delivery of nutrition care through health systems is a key strategy to support population dietary improvements. Nutrition care refers to “any practice conducted by a health professional in an attempt to improve the nutrition behaviour and subsequent health outcomes of an individual” and has been shown to improve patient outcomes, often with reduced risk, side effects and costs when compared with pharmacological interventions. Medical doctors, in particular general practitioners (GPs), are well-placed to support nutrition care, in part due to their regular contact with their patients, which also provides opportunities for referral to other nutrition services, such as dietitians, when further expertise is required. However, nutrition education in medical training remains inadequate regardless of country, setting, or year of training, and this remains a pervasive barrier to the implementation of nutrition care.