Attitudes towards Nutrition Education among Pediatricians and Guardians

Abstract

Childhood obesity rates in the United States are at historic highs. In Lake County, Indiana, the obesity rates of WIC children ages 2-5 years old is 12.1%. While the causes of obesity are well known within the scientific community, there appears to be a disconnect when relaying this information to patients. One cause of this disconnect is the inadequate nutrition education that physicians receive during medical school and residency. A survey found that the average medical school devotes less than 20 hours to nutrition education. Additionally, the biochemical nutrition education that students receive in medical school cannot be easily translated to patient intervention. Since 62% of patients believe that their physicians can help them lose weight, having physicians who do not have adequate education on nutrition leaves patients without the help they need. Our surveys were developed to assess the level of nutrition counseling provided by pediatricians and how patients/guardians prefer to be educated. Our hypothesis is that pediatricians will benefit from further nutrition education in medical school, and that guardians will desire in person instructions in pediatric offices as well as easy and accessible online sources. Two surveys were created, one for physicians and another for parents/guardians of children ages 1-12 years old residing in Lake County. The physician survey contained 15 items that evaluated attitudes toward nutrition and obesity education. Topics included level of nutrition counseling education received in medical school and residency, how much time physicians spend educating patients/parents on nutrition, what nutrition education resources they currently provide, opinion on whose responsibility it is to provide nutrition education, and what approach they think would be best to educate patients and parents. The guardian survey contained 21 items that evaluated dietary behaviors. The dietary behaviors included family dynamics (who typically feds the children, if food is prepared in the home, and how much is spent on food each week) and child eating habits (how many snacks per day, how often the child eats fast food, and how often the child consumes sweetened beverages). The surveys will be utilized for future research, and the results will help determine the approach for educating physicians and guardians. A booklet of healthy recipes was also developed to educate on healthy eating and as a participation benefit. The goal of the booklet was to choose easy, child friendly recipes that the family could cook together. To gain background on nutrition education, we observed the different education methods of local pediatricians and reviewed the literature. Intervention at both the clinical and community levels will be important for improving long-term health outcomes in pediatric patients. The knowledge gained from these surveys will aide in the development of programs needed to provide physicians, guardians,and patients with proper nutrition education.