Ryan's Bill Seeks Nutrition Curricula in Med Schools
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-13, today joined with two of his colleagues in introducing legislation that would create a grant program for medical schools and osteopathic colleges to create an integrated nutrition curriculum program.
Joining Ryan as co-sponsors of the legislation are U.S. Reps. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz. The bill is titled the Expansion of Nutrition’s Role in Curricula and Healthcare (ENRICH) Act.
The three-year grant program would fund the establishment or expansion of nutrition curriculum in order to highlight the role that nutrition and diet play in prevention and management of obesity and cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.
Health-care spending in the United States continues to rise around the nation, the congressmen note in their joint announcement. Expenditures in the U.S. on health care surpassed $2.3 trillion in 2008, with costs from chronic disease treatment accounting for more than 75% of national health costs. Raising awareness and increasing nutrition education can help improve many American’s diets and help reduce the risks of these chronic diseases.
“An understanding of proper nutrition is central throughout our lives and should be a necessity for future physicians to learn during any medical education,” said Ryan in a prepared statement. “With U.S. health-care expenditures continuing to rise to unprecedented levels, we must do everything in our power to improve Americans’ diets. We need to raise awareness and reduce our risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes that are plaguing our nation and are directly connected with diet and lifestyle choices."
The ENRICH Act has been endorsed by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and American Society of Nutrition.
“Nutrition is the most important part of medical treatment for diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and many other conditions,” noted Neal Barnard, M.D., an adjunct professor of medicine at the George Washington University and president of the nonprofit Physicians Committee. “But most doctors actually receive little or no education in nutrition and simply don’t understand the crucial link between diet and disease.”
SOURCE: Office of U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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