Integrated Nutrition Curriculum

Our current curriculum begins with the study of metabolism and an examination of everything we eat: dietary carbohydrates and sugars, fats and proteins, and essential vitamins and minerals. As students advance into organ systems-based courses and clinical Clerkships, we expand and apply this foundational nutrition content. While students learn about current dietary recommendations and dietary sources, the emphasis is on how these nutrients function and their very important roles in prevention of common chronic diseases — including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity — that not only reduce quality of life, but also can be deadly.

42 total hours of coursework 

Year 1

In the first year of medical education, the emphasis is on laying the foundation for nutrition education throughout the curriculum, beginning with case-based instruction in nutritional biochemistry that illustrates the absolute essentiality of nutrients in the molecular and metabolic processes involved in human health. As students enter the organ systems-based phase of the first-year curriculum, we build on their knowledge of nutritional requirements and apply it to understanding the immune, cardiovascular, renal and endocrine systems — with an emphasis on using nutrition to prevent common chronic diseases, such as atherosclerosis, osteoporosis and diabetes, as well as obesity and a wide variety of inherited metabolic disorders. 

Year 2

In the second year, nutrition education is expanded through the integration of nutritional roles and requirements in the nervous system and the effect of nutrient deficiency on brain health and behavior. This is followed by a detailed understanding of the role of the gastrointestinal system in nutrient digestion and absorption, as well as disorders of the GI system that disrupt nutrient balance. Nutrition requirements are also integrated into the study of health and disease associated with the musculoskeletal, reproductive and hematological systems by the exploration of nutritional roles in the normal function of these systems, as well as the dangers of nutrient deficiencies in diverse states such as pregnancy and lactation. We also examine disorders including anemias, immune suppression and genetic disorders that impact nutrient utilization.  

Years 3 and 4

In the second half of their medical training, students begin clinical Clerkships, which provide opportunities to apply their nutrition knowledge. The third year presents a particularly strong opportunity to expand nutrition knowledge with the Doctoring 3 course, which has advanced modules that include dietary management of diabetes, preventive cardiovascular nutrition, and geriatric nutrition. Combined with hands-on clinical experience in years 3 and 4, this training provides the ideal environment for teaching future physicians to integrate nutrition into the clinical care setting.