Editing Human nutrition (section)

== Advice and guidance ==
=== Government policies ===
[[File:MyPlate Game.jpg|thumb|MyPlate Game]]
[[Canada's Food Guide]] is an example of a government-run nutrition program. Produced by [[Health Canada]], the guide advises food quantities, provides education on balanced nutrition, and promotes physical activity in accordance with government-mandated nutrient needs. Like other nutrition programs around the world, Canada's Food Guide divides nutrition into four main food groups: vegetables and fruit, grain products, milk and alternatives, and meat and alternatives.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20170612160554/http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index-eng.php Canada's Food Guide]. Health Canada</ref> Unlike its American counterpart, the Canadian guide references and provides alternative to meat and dairy, which can be attributed to the growing [[vegan]] and [[vegetarian]] movements.

In the US, nutritional standards and recommendations are established jointly by the [[USDA|US Department of Agriculture]] and [[United States Department of Health and Human Services|US Department of Health and Human Services]] (HHS) and these recommendations are published as the [[Dietary Guidelines for Americans]]. Dietary and physical activity guidelines from the USDA are presented in the concept of [[MyPlate]], which superseded the [[MyPyramid|food pyramid]], which replaced the [[Four Food Groups]]. The Senate committee currently responsible for oversight of the USDA is the ''Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee''. Committee hearings are often televised on [[C-SPAN]]. The U.S. HHS provides a sample week-long menu that fulfills the nutritional recommendations of the government.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080308032337/http://www.mypyramid.gov/downloads/sample_menu.pdf Sample Menus for a 2000 Calorie Food Pattern]. mypyramid.gov</ref>

=== Government programs ===
Governmental organisations have been working on nutrition literacy interventions in non-primary health care settings to address the nutrition information problem in the U.S. Some programs include:

The Family Nutrition Program (FNP) is a free nutrition education program serving low-income adults around the U.S. This program is funded by the Food Nutrition Service's (FNS) branch of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) usually through a local state academic institution that runs the program. The FNP has developed a series of tools to help families participating in the [[Food stamp program|Food Stamp Program]] stretch their food dollar and form healthful eating habits including nutrition education.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Guthrie | first1=Joanne F. | last2=Stommes | first2=Eileen | last3=Voichick | first3=Jane | date=January–February 2006 | title=Evaluating Food Stamp Nutrition Education: Issues and Opportunities | url=https://www.jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(05)00003-5/fulltext | journal=Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior | volume=38 | issue=1 | pages=6–11 | doi=10.1016/j.jneb.2005.11.001 | pmid=16595272 | access-date=2020-01-03 | archive-date=2022-01-25 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125210911/https://www.jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(05)00003-5/fulltext | url-status=live}}</ref>

[https://web.archive.org/web/20111118025724/http://www.csrees.usda.gov/nea/food/efnep/efnep.html Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program] (ENFEP) is a unique program that currently operates in all 50 states and in [[American Samoa]], [[Guam]], [[Micronesia]], [[Northern Mariana Islands]], [[Puerto Rico]], and the [[Virgin Islands]]. It is designed to assist limited-resource audiences in acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and changed behavior necessary for nutritionally sound diets, and to contribute to their personal development and the improvement of the total family diet and nutritional well-being.

An example of a state initiative to promote nutrition literacy is [https://web.archive.org/web/20120221061109/http://www.smartbodies.org/smart-bodies Smart Bodies], a public-private partnership between the state's largest university system and largest health insurer, Louisiana State Agricultural Center and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation. Launched in 2005, this program promotes lifelong healthful eating patterns and physically active lifestyles for children and their families. It is an interactive educational program designed to help prevent childhood obesity through classroom activities that teach children healthful eating habits and physical exercise.

=== Education ===
{{Main|Nutrition education|Food studies#Food and education}}

Nutrition is taught in schools in many countries. In [[England and Wales]], the [[Personal and social education|Personal and Social Education]] and Food Technology curricula include nutrition, stressing the importance of a balanced diet and teaching how to read nutrition labels on packaging. In many schools, a Nutrition class will fall within the Family and Consumer Science (FCS) or Health departments. In some American schools, students are required to take a certain number of FCS or Health related classes. Nutrition is offered at many schools, and, if it is not a class of its own, nutrition is included in other FCS or Health classes such as: Life Skills, Independent Living, Single Survival, Freshmen Connection, Health etc. In many Nutrition classes, students learn about the food groups, the food pyramid, Daily Recommended Allowances, calories, vitamins, minerals, malnutrition, physical activity, healthful food choices, portion sizes, and how to live a healthy life.<ref>{{Cite journal | last=Rizvi | first=DaliyaS | date=2022 | title=Health education and global health: Practices, applications, and future research | journal=Journal of Education and Health Promotion | language=en | volume=11 | issue=1 | pages=262 | doi=10.4103/jehp.jehp_218_22 | doi-access=free | issn=2277-9531 | pmc=9621358 | pmid=36325224}}</ref>

A 1985 US [[United States National Research Council|National Research Council]] report entitled ''Nutrition Education in US Medical Schools'' concluded that nutrition education in medical schools was inadequate.<ref name="p. 4">Commission on Life Sciences. (1985). ''Nutrition Education in US Medical Schools'', [http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=597&page=4 p. 4] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607120934/http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=597&page=4 |date=2011-06-07 }}. National Academies Press.</ref> Only 20% of the schools surveyed taught nutrition as a separate, required course. A 2006 survey found that this number had risen to 30%.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors=Adams KM, Lindell KC, Kohlmeier M, Zeisel SH | title=Status of nutrition education in medical schools | journal=Am. J. Clin. Nutr. | volume=83 | issue=4 | pages=941S–14S | year=2006 | pmid=16600952 | pmc=2430660 | doi=10.1093/ajcn/83.4.941S}}</ref> Membership by physicians in leading professional nutrition societies such as the [[American Society for Nutrition]] has generally declined from the 1990s.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=McClave | first1=Stephen A. | last2=Mechanick | first2=Jeffrey I. | last3=Bistrian | first3=Bruce | last4=Graham | first4=Toby | last5=Hegazi | first5=Refaat | last6=Jensen | first6=Gordon L. | last7=Kushner | first7=Robert F. | last8=Merritt | first8=Russell | date=1 December 2016 | title=What is the significance of a physician shortage in nutrition medicine? | journal=Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition | volume=34 | issue=6 Suppl | pages=7S–20S | doi=10.1177/0148607110375429 | pmid=21149831}}</ref>

=== Professional organizations ===
In the US, [[Dietitian|Registered dietitian nutritionists]] (RDs or RDNs)<ref>{{cite web | title=What is an RDN and DTR? | url=http://www.eatrightpro.org/resources/about-us/what-is-an-rdn-and-dtr | publisher=Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics | access-date=9 May 2015 | archive-date=23 December 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223114300/http://www.eatrightpro.org/resources/about-us/what-is-an-rdn-and-dtr | url-status=dead}}</ref> are [[health professionals]] qualified to provide safe, evidence-based dietary advice which includes a review of what is [[Eating|eaten]], a thorough review of nutritional health, and a personalized nutritional treatment plan through [[dieting]]. They also provide preventive and therapeutic programs at work places, schools and similar institutions. Certified Clinical [[Nutritionist]]s or CCNs, are trained health professionals who also offer dietary advice on the role of nutrition in chronic disease, including possible prevention or remediation by addressing nutritional deficiencies before resorting to drugs.<ref>http://www.iaacn.org/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221204212840/https://iaacn.org/ |date=2022-12-04 }} The International & American Associations of Clinical Nutritionist, 2014, Retrieved 14 December 2014</ref> Government regulation especially in terms of licensing, is currently less universal for the CCN than that of RD or RDN. Another advanced Nutrition Professional is a Certified Nutrition Specialist or CNS. These Board Certified Nutritionists typically specialize in [[obesity]] and [[chronic disease]]. In order to become board certified, potential CNS candidate must pass an examination, much like Registered Dieticians. This exam covers specific domains within the health sphere including; Clinical Intervention and Human Health.<ref>{{Cite web | title=FAQs about CNS Certification – Certification Board for Nutrition Specialists | url=http://cbns.org/faqs-cns-certification/ | access-date=24 September 2015 | archive-date=11 August 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140811170414/http://cbns.org/faqs-cns-certification/ | url-status=live}}</ref> The [[National Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists]] offers board certification for physicians practicing nutrition medicine.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Van Horn | first1=L | last2=Lenders | first2=CM | last3=Pratt | first3=CA | last4=Beech | first4=B | last5=Carney | first5=PA | last6=Dietz | first6=W | last7=DiMaria-Ghalili | first7=R | last8=Harlan | first8=T | last9=Hash | first9=R |last10=Kohlmeier |first10=M | last11=Kolasa | first11=K | last12=Krebs | first12=NF | last13=Kushner | first13=RF | last14=Lieh-Lai | first14=M | last15=Lindsley | first15=J | last16=Meacham | first16=S | last17=Nicastro | first17=H | last18=Nowson | first18=C | last19=Palmer | first19=C |last20=Paniagua |first20=M | last21=Philips | first21=E | last22=Ray | first22=S | last23=Rose | first23=S | last24=Salive | first24=M | last25=Schofield | first25=M | last26=Thompson | first26=K | last27=Trilk | first27=JL | last28=Twillman | first28=G | last29=White | first29=JD |last30=Zappalà |first30=G | last31=Vargas | first31=A | last32=Lynch | first32=C | title=Advancing Nutrition Education, Training, and Research for Medical Students, Residents, Fellows, Attending Physicians, and Other Clinicians: Building Competencies and Interdisciplinary Coordination. | journal=Advances in Nutrition | date=1 November 2019 | volume=10 | issue=6 | pages=1181–1200 | doi=10.1093/advances/nmz083 | pmid=31728505 | pmc=6855992 | doi-access=free}}</ref>