Factors determining the integration of nutritional genomics into clinical practice by registered dietitians

Abstract

Conflict of Interest MA has worked with several start-ups as a consultant in the area of nutrigenetic testing.

Providing Personalised Nutrition: Consumers' Trust and Preferences Regarding Sources of Information, Service Providers and Regulators, and Communication Channels

“…A greater degree of personalisation can be achieved with analysis of an individual's genotype and phenotype with which diets may interact and co-determine the risk of diet-related diseases [8,9] . Nutrition delivery services and practitioners are beginning to access and use this type of information [10] .…”

Personalised Nutrition Technologies and Innovations: A Cross-National Survey of Registered Dietitians

“…Although dietitians from various countries have ventured into this emerging area of technology-enabled personalised nutrition and are integrating technologies into practice [9], the application across the dietetics profession remains low [10][11][12][13]. Possible reasons suggested by previous research (which has focused on the adoption of personalised nutrition) by nutrition professionals as part of their practice are low confidence in genetics technology, a lack of knowledge of the role of genetics in chronic diseases, and concerns about direct-to-consumer (DTC) tests [11,14].…”

“…Results from the recent "Future Dietitian 2025" project [15] highlighted a need for skills training and recommended, inter alia, that dietitians should be provided with continuous professional development and training so as to keep abreast of technological advances, raise the awareness of novel technologies, and widen the use of personalised nutrition in dietetics [15]. Indeed, there has been a lack of research which has studied factors determining the uptake and non-uptake of personalised nutrition technologies by dietetics practitioners [13].…”

Opportunities for training for nutritional professionals in nutritional genomics: What is out there?

“…To ensure that dietitians and nutritionists are equipped with knowledge in this area and skills in application, there is a need to (i) implement detailed genetic, molecular biology and genomic education and application aspects in all nutrition and dietetics courses and (ii) ensure easily accessible, independent training opportunities for nutritionists and dietitians to enable postgraduation professional development. Training and education serve to improve knowledge, confidence and attitudes towards nutritional genomics, as well as critical analysis skills, which are associated with integration into practice …”

“…Training and education serve to improve knowledge, confidence and attitudes towards nutritional genomics, as well as critical analysis skills, which are associated with integration into practice. 6 There have been repeated calls over the last decade for greater training and education on the topic of nutritional genomics for qualified nutrition professionals, 8 and over the years, a number of courses have become available through tertiary institutions, industry and scientific organisations. While this has increased opportunities to access postgraduate and continuing professional education and training, the question now arises whether these courses are appropriate for the task of training nutrition professionals to ensure they are appropriately placed to advise on genetic-based nutrition recommendations.…”