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BLOG: Many clinicians still unaware of nutrition’s role in eye health
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I had some recent conversations with colleagues in several different venues over the last month, and they brought out some interesting concepts. As a private practice OD, I don’t get a chance to interact with many docs on different levels. However, as a speaker on the circuit, it is fascinating to hear the different perspectives of my peers.
Because I most often speak on nutrition topics, that area seems to be the one that pops up most often. At a recent meeting, we were discussing the role of nutrition for ophthalmologists. While the Ocular Nutrition Society (ONS) encourages membership to all eye care providers, I have found that many ophthalmologists are unaware of the true role of nutrition in eye health. This shouldn’t be surprising, because their backgrounds often don’t lean heavily on nutritional therapies. Given this reality, the role of nutrition in ophthalmology is falling to their staff.
I’ve been engaged to give another talk to the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO). These folks are the support staff in ophthalmology practices who will have conversations with patients regarding nutritional support for eye health. While the lead doctor may have some input about products (whether to offer in-office or not, for example), much of the discussion will be conducted with the staff. One question that comes up for me is: “Where are they receiving their nutrition education?”
Another colleague and I were discussing the status of students who are just graduating. This colleague has access to students in his clinic, and their discussion of nutrition with them usually consists of: “…well, I know something about AREDS….” Ouch! While medical schools offer almost no nutrition courses, optometry schools aren’t doing much better.
As an example, this colleague had an offer from a local optometry school to come down and offer “an hour” on ocular nutrition. His response was something like: “Well, sure, then I’ll offer another hour on the economic development in Western civilization.” How can you cover ocular nutrition in just 50 minutes? I have more than 12 hours on my personal list of presentations alone!
Lastly, I was with another colleague who assists with the scientific abstracts on the ONS website. This colleague was reviewing some of the statements that were being made in the media regarding nutritional recommendations. We were stunned to see some statements that totally ignored recent studies and wondered if these authors ever actually read the studies in question. All too often, consumers (and doctors, too) will read only the headlines or maybe the abstract of a study instead of reading the details of the study itself. I would hope that doctors would take enough of an interest in a topic to read a study and decide for themselves if they agree with the analysis. However, sadly enough, not all docs are savvy in reading research and translating that into conversational recommendations.
If you’re one of those docs, please find someone who does read the studies and knows how to relate the findings; it’s important for your patients’ well-being.
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