Dietary Counseling Primary Care

Nutritional counseling is an integral part of helping patients live healthier lives as research demonstrates the ability of proper nutrition to prevent disease and even treat and reverse chronic disease.

Dietary counseling primary care. Although some surveys report a positive attitude towards such interventions others report the existence of significant barriers that limit their involvement. Intensive counseling can be delivered by primary care clinicians or by referral to other specialists such as nutritionists or dietitians. Overcoming challenges to obesity counseling. This article provides an overview of evidence based nutrition and clinical tips for counseling adult patients in a primary care setting.

If better nutrition enables you to lower your blood pressure or cholesterol or get your weight in check it can potentially save you thousands of dollars in medications and other care down the road. Dietary advice in primary care. Discusses and offers tips and resources for primary care providers to address the sensitive topic of weight control with patients. When doctors aren t formally educated about nutrition it shouldn t surprise us that it s rarely addressed in clinical visits.

The literature regarding the attitude of primary care staff towards dietary interventions is less conclusive. Studies have shown that nutrition counseling occurs in only 20 to 30 percent of non acute primary care visits and the length of counseling per visit averages one minute. Preventive services task force recommends intensive behavioral dietary counseling for adult patients with hyperlipidemia and other known risk factors for cardiovascular and diet related chronic disease.