The federal health and education departments are pushing for significant changes in medical school curricula as part of the RFK Jr-led Make America Healthy Again campaign.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy, Jr and Linda McMahon, head of the Department of Education, are urging American medical schools to ‘immediately’ incorporate specialized nutrition classes into their required coursework.

Many schools, which have already started their academic year, now have just two weeks to develop plans to include nutrition courses or risk facing significant federal funding cuts.

Secretary Kennedy said: ‘Medical schools talk about nutrition but fail to teach it.’

This pressure is a part of RFK Jr’s initiative to emphasize disease prevention over treatment, addressing what he describes as a ‘chronic disease epidemic’ in the US, marked by high obesity rates and lifelong health issues.

The government’s initiative focuses on six key areas, spanning from pre-med requirements and medical school curricula to national licensing exams, residency programs, board certification criteria, and continuing education for practicing physicians.

Research published in 2023 highlighted a considerable lack of nutrition education focus. A survey indicated that approximately 60 percent of medical students had not been offered a nutrition course during their educational training.

RFK Jr added: ‘We demand immediate, measurable reforms to embed nutrition education across every stage of medical training, hold institutions accountable for progress, and equip every future physician with the tools to prevent disease — not just treat it.’

The US is experiencing near-record high obesity rates, an ever-growing rate of new cancers diagnosed in young people, projected spikes in neurodegenerative diseases, and persistently high diabetes and heart disease rates.

McMahon said in a statement: ‘US medical education has not kept up with the overwhelming research on the role of nutrition in preventing and treating chronic diseases.

‘Medical schools across the country must act now to align their training with the latest research so that future physicians have the means to best help their patients stay healthy.’

Nutrition experts have persistently campaigned for medical schools to expand their nutrition curriculum, with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), which represents 173 US and Canadian medical schools, stating: ‘Increased attention could be afforded to nutrition topics such as the environmental impact of food production and choices on health, food labels and the health impacts of ingredients, and community food resources.’

Nearly 90 percent of all US medical schools include nutrition content in their curricula, but the instruction students receive is generally insufficient.

A 2015 study found that only 27 percent of schools provided the requisite 25 hours of nutrition education, as per the National Academy of Sciences and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education. 

A 2023 study found that fewer than eight percent of medical school students reported receiving 20 or more hours of nutrition education over four years. 

Furthermore, data show that 75 percent of US medical schools have no required specific clinical nutrition classes in their curricula.

To address this critical gap, the federal government is proposing a strategy that would impose nutrition education requirements across a doctor’s academic career.

The nutritional knowledge gap appears most acute among the specialists treating conditions where diet plays a critical role, including endocrinologists, cardiologists, oncologists and nephrologists, according to Duke University researchers.

They cited a 2017 study that found 90 percent of subspecialists received little to no formal nutrition education during their fellowship training, with 59 percent reporting a similar deficit during residency.

A lack of foundational training has a direct impact on clinical practice. 

A separate survey at NYU Langone Health revealed that, consequently, only 14 percent of healthcare providers felt confident discussing nutrition with their patients.

‘In addition, we immediately need to address the critical shortage of physician nutrition specialists who will serve as the next generation of leaders in clinical nutrition care and research,’ Duke researchers added.

Expanded nutrition education in medical schools has significant support among doctors.

Dr Jo Marie Reilly, a professor at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, Dr David Eisenberg, a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and a cadre of other doctors published a recommendation in JAMA Network Open last year for a national curriculum, which would involve 36 ‘nutritional competencies’ for medical students to meet.

RFK Jr set a lofty goal for his tenure six months ago: to reverse the chronic disease epidemic in America. Yet the federal government has pulled funding for key projects aimed at reducing chronic disease.

The Trump administration’s proposal to eliminate the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, along with its $1.4 billion in annual funding, is among the most consequential of its efforts to scale back federal public health initiatives.

The National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion houses programs to track and prevent diabetes in children, adolescents, and young adults, heart disease and stroke, and cancer, as well as risk factors including obesity and tobacco use.