News Photo by Kayla Wikaryasz Jean Johnson is seen on Wednesday stocking a shelf with a container of cherry tomatoes at the Sunrise Side Co-op Market in Alpena.

ALPENA — The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), supported by the U.S. Department of Education, announced on Wednesday an initiative to encourage nutrition education and training in medical education organizations.

According to a press release from HHS, the initiative is part of President Donald Trump and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again agenda, which prioritizes prevention and reducing chronic disease through improving the American diet and public health measures.

In the initiative, HHS has directed U.S. medical education organizations to submit plans detailing their nutrition education commitments, according to the release.

The release states that an estimated 1 million Americans die from diet-related chronic diseases annually. However, the U.S. spends more than $4.4 trillion annually on chronic disease and mental health care.

The District Health Department No. 4 (DHD4) offers WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) to community members, which is a program that focuses on nutrition education, provides healthy supplemental foods, breastfeeding support, and referrals to health care providers, according to Chelsea Engle, nursing director.

Engle told The News that a federal nutrition education initiative should collaborate with local WIC providers.

“The efforts of the nutrition education initiative would be further supported by coordinating and collaborating with the local WIC program,” Engle said. “Not only would it complement the care received by the provider, there would be consistent messaging and support for those families.”

According to the HHS release, data from the Association of American Medical Colleges shows that all U.S. medical schools cover nutrition in curriculum.

The release also cites a Journal of Wellness report titled “Survey of Nutrition Education Among Medical Students.” This report surveyed 5,500 students from nine chapters of the nonprofit Medicine in Motion, with one chapter part of the Wayne State University School of Medicine. The report states that the nonprofit aims to “address burnout in medicine through physical activity, community service, and philanthropy.”

According to the report, the survey’s goal was to “provide medical student perspectives on both the degree and necessity of nutrition education during medical school.”

The report explains that of 5,500 students asked to participate, 1,182 (21.5%) responded. On average, participants reported 1.2 hours of formal nutrition education per year. However, 57.6% had not participated in a medical school course on nutrition.

“Medical schools talk about nutrition but fail to teach it,” Secretary Kennedy said in the HHS release. “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.”

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon stated in the release that medical education does not address research that shows the role nutrition has 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,” McMahon said. “The U.S. The Department of Education is proud to stand with HHS in working to lower chronic disease rates, especially in children.”

In the initiative, the HHS and the Department of Education are calling for nutrition education requirements to be embedded across the six areas that include pre-medical standards, medical school curricula integration, medical licensing examination, residency requirements, board certification, and continuing education.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.