RFK Jr. demands nutrition curriculum plans from med schools
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Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday gave medical schools less than two weeks to "immediately" add more nutrition education to their curricula.
Why it matters: Kennedy previously threatened the schools with loss of funding if they don't beef up their nutrition education as part of his "Make America Healthy Again" agenda, which also includes a planned revamp of federal dietary guidelines.
Driving the news: Kennedy and Education Secretary Linda McMahon called for medical schools to "immediately implement comprehensive nutrition education and training."
- The institutions have until Sept. 8 to produce written plans.
What he's saying: "We train physicians to wield the latest surgical tools, but not to guide patients on how to stay out of the operating room in the first place," Kennedy wrote in an op-ed Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal.
- "We know that when applied properly, nutrition counseling can prevent and even reverse chronic disease," he wrote.
Between the lines: While many medical schools say they already incorporate nutrition education, it can vary widely in its breadth and depth.
- In a 2023-2024 Association of American Medical Colleges survey of 182 institutions, all respondents covered at least one of these in their required curricula: nutrition, food access and security, and obesity and bariatric care. Almost 90% offered curricula in both required and elective formats.
- However, the survey found less than half (45%) reported that nutrition was included in multiple courses or rotations and 17% reported the information was fully integrated across all years or phases of their curriculum.
Kennedy's latest push was welcome news to advocates of improving medical school nutrition programs, said Stephen Devries, a cardiologist and co-founder of the Gaples Institute, which created a nutrition curriculum being used in 10 U.S. medical schools.
- Among the greatest challenges medical schools face is an already jam-packed curriculum with few places for additions.
- "For death, dietary risks are the leading risk factor," Devries said. "My response to the deans of education is: 'If we're going to present an evidence-based curriculum for teaching ... how can nutrition, in a serious way, not make the cut?'"
Reality check: It also comes at a time when medical schools are sustaining deep cuts and freezes in federal funding.
