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14 T M C » P U L S E | J U LY 2 0 1 8 "Today, most medical schools in the United States teach less than 25 hours of nutrition over four years. The fact that less than 20 percent of medical schools have a single required course in nutrition, it's a scandal. It's outrageous. It's obscene," Eisenberg told PBS NewsHour last year. Nutrition education is especially important for health care providers in internal medicine, gastro- enterology and cardiology—specialties covering many of the diseases that can be prevented or delayed by healthy eating. A recent survey of 930 cardiologists commis- sioned by the American College of Cardiology found a similar information gap about nutrition. The results, published last year in the American Journal of Medicine, found that 90 percent of the cardiologists surveyed reported receiving no or minimal nutrition education during their fellowship training and 31 percent reported no nutrition education in medical school. Still, nearly all of the cardiologists—95 percent—considered it their responsibility to provide patients with basic nutrition information. But without adequate training, most medi- cal professionals are ill-equipped to give their patients useful, relevant and consistent healthy eating advice—particularly with the plethora of diet plans, pills and potions in the marketplace. "One of the biggest problems is that mixed diet messaging. You hear from one provider, 'This is what you need to do,' and then it's something different from someone else. Then you have somebody with letters behind their name; they have a book, and you follow what they're say- ing," McWhorter said. "We're trying to keep that messaging consistent, which is really important for the public that doesn't understand nutrition because it's super confusing right now." 'It takes a village' Other dietitians in the medical center advocate for nutrition by visiting local schools, community events and businesses to teach healthy eating habits. "Our hope is that we educate one person, who educates or at least tries to influence changes in others—be it their family, co-workers or friends," said Sharon Smalling, a clinical dietitian specialist at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, who coaches patients recovering from cardiac and pulmonary conditions. Ultimately, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the obesity health crisis. With genetics, food deserts, food prices and time constraints con- tributing to the complex kaleidoscope of obesity issues, experts agree that "it takes a village," Smalling said. "To successfully combat obesity, it will take representatives from all entities affected by the obesity problem—insurers, health care profes- sionals, educators, corporations large and small, and, yes, food companies, too—coming together to determine strategies that will work in many different circumstances to overcome barriers to healthier lifestyles and access to the assistance needed," Smalling said. To successfully combat obesity, it will take repre- sentatives from all entities affected by the obesity problem—insurers, health care professionals, educators, corporations large and small, and, yes, food companies, too—coming together ... — SHARON SMALLING Clinical dietitian specialist at Memorial Hermann-TMC CENTERED LIVING LUXURY APARTMENT HOMES IN HOUSTON'S MED CENTER 713-527-1000 LatitudeMedCenter.com Enter Our VIP LOTTERY Call Today to Book Your Tour Debuting This Summer