Physicians can improve diets of patients who live in food deserts by providing nutrition materials, training in food preparation, and promoting nutritious food availability in communities where they practice.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E918-923. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.918.
Farmworkers can become ill due to toxic exposure in their work environments. Recommending specific restrictions, educating patients on protection strategies, and partnering with agribusiness owners and allied health workers can drive development of alternatives to agricultural practices with health risks.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E932-940. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.932.
Millennium Development Goals on nutrition and health seek to end hunger and significantly reduce malnutrition and premature death by 2025. Health systems and health professionals have important roles in meeting these goals.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E979-986. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.979.
Sarah Reinhardt, MPH, RD and Ricardo J. Salvador, PhD, MS
Clinicians should contribute to healthful, equitable, sustainable food procurement initiatives consistent with their institutions' health-promotion missions.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E974-978. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.974.
Gail Geller, ScD, MHS and Paul A. Watkins, MD, PhD
Six cohorts of first-year medical students have been shown to have negative attitudes about obesity that are consistent over time. Attitudes can be improved, however, by using popular media and an ethics framework to discuss personal experiences and beliefs about obesity.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E948-959. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.948.
Physicians need better education in nutrition science. Referring patients to nutrition experts for dietary counseling would motivate food availability and intake assessment as routine. Good clinical counseling considers patients' cultural traditions and environmental sustainability as key ethical values.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E994-1000. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.994.
Divya Yerramilli, MD, MBE, Alexandra Charrow, MD, MBE, and Arthur Caplan, PhD
Physicians should be aware of the powerful impact celebrities’ cancer narratives can have on patients’ experiences of their illnesses and treatment decisions. Partnering with celebrities is one strategy for delivering evidence-based health information and messaging to the public.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(11):E1075-1081. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1075.
Vegan patients screened for vitamin and mineral deficiencies might benefit from supplements, but physicians are obliged to discuss lack of regulation in the supplement industry and possible risks.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(11):E1025-1032. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1025.