Physicians Committee
March 2015
Seven out of 10 deaths in the United States are now caused by chronic diseases that can be prevented and treated through lifestyle improvements such as diet and exercise.
The ENRICH Act will target schools that combine nutrition and physical activity education with residency programs, help medical schools meet the federal recommendation, and help meet the Healthy People 2020 goal of including more nutrition and physical activity in physician office visits. It will also increase referrals to registered dietitians, nutritionists, and sports medicine and exercise professionals.
The ENRICH Act is commonsense legislation that reflects our society's growing awareness of the impact of lifestyle factors on our health. Tell your Congressional Representative to sign on as a co-sponsor of the ENRICH Act.
Sign an online petition here.
And/or better yet, make direct contact:
Find and contact your U.S. Representative here
If your doctor is like most in the United States, he or she likely
received little nutrition training—a troubling fact considering the
overwhelming evidence that dietary changes often surpass the most aggressive
conventional treatments—even drugs and surgery—when it comes to preventing,
treating, and reversing chronic disease.
In fact, seven out of 10 deaths in the United States are now caused by
chronic diseases that can be prevented and treated through lifestyle
improvements such as diet and exercise.
Fortunately, the Expanding Nutrition’s Role in Curricula and Healthcare
(ENRICH) Act (H.R. 1411), a bipartisan bill introduced by Rep. Tim Ryan,
D-Ohio, and Rep. Pat Tiberi, R-Ohio, provides funding to support nutrition
and physical activity education courses in U.S. medical schools.
Nine out of 10 physicians believe that nutrition counseling should be part
of primary care visits, but less than 15 percent feel qualified to offer it.
At the same time, more than half of graduating medical students rate their
nutrition knowledge as “inadequate.”
That’s because three out of four medical schools fall short of federal
recommendations for nutrition education. A 1985 National Academy of Sciences
(NAS) report recommended that all medical schools require at least 25
contact hours of nutrition education. In 2004, only 38 percent of medical
schools met these minimum standards. By 2010, that number had shrunk to 27
percent. The same can be said for physical activity education—although the
majority of medical school deans regard exercise prescriptions as important,
only 13 percent of medical schools offer a core course or required
curriculum on physical activity.
A study in JAMA Internal Medicine shows patients who receive an extra 5.5
minutes in primary care visits to talk about nutrition lose 5 pounds, lower
saturated fat intake, and improve LDL cholesterol levels. For exercise, in
one study, physical activity among patients increased after receiving
physician advice.
In recognizing the importance of lifestyle factors such as nutrition and
physical activity, Healthy People 2020—the federal government’s framework
for a healthier nation—includes goals to increase the proportion of
physician office visits that include counseling or education related to
nutrition and physical activity.
The ENRICH Act establishes a $15 million grant program—all money from
existing funds—to help medical schools incorporate nutrition and physical
activity education into their curricula to meet expert recommendations. This
will allow recipient medical schools to offer new courses, integrate
nutrition and physical activity information into existing courses for all
specialties, provide continuing medical education and workshops, offer
electives, and include this information in residency rotations.
Improving nutrition education for medical professionals has been a central
part of the Physicians Committee’s mission since its inception in 1985. A
strong momentum to address this problem is building in Congress, and we need
your help to ensure that doctors have the most up-to-date nutrition and
physical activity education training they need.
The ENRICH Act is commonsense legislation that reflects our society's growing awareness of the impact of lifestyle factors on our health. I urge you to sign on as a co-sponsor of the ENRICH Act.
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