WEDNESDAY, June 5, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Fewer than a quarter of people who survive serious heart disease get the dietary advice they need to protect their future health, according to a new study.
Researchers recently found that only 23 percent of people treated for serious illnesses such as heart attacks or heart failure receive dietary counseling within three months of their hospitalization. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition.
“Nutrition counseling may reduce the risk of cardiovascular events and disease, but our study reveals that the majority of patients at risk after a major heart attack are not receiving this essential education,” said senior researcher Dr. Brahmajee Nalamothu, professor of medicine and cardiology at the University of Michigan Medical School.
For the study, researchers followed nearly 150,000 patients with serious heart problems at hospitals across Michigan from late 2015 to early 2020.
Most patients who received dietary advice received it as part of a cardiac rehabilitation program, but the researchers noted that only 20 to 30 percent of eligible patients take advantage of such rehabilitation.
Outside of cardiac rehabilitation, physicians provided dietary counseling only 5% of the time.
The researchers say doctors may not have the time to give dietary advice or may not consider themselves experts enough to provide proper counselling.
“When patients receive this education, we see amazing results, with some cutting their cholesterol levels in half within a few weeks,” said lead researcher Dr. Eric Brandt, director of preventive cardiology at the University of Michigan’s Frankel Heart and Vascular Center.
“However, physicians are often limited by the time they need to manage other aspects of their patients’ medical conditions,” Brandt said in a university news release. “Furthermore, most cardiologists are not adequately educated to offer dietary advice themselves.”
The researchers found that women, people aged 65 or older, and people with chronic kidney disease were less likely to receive dietary advice.
Results showed that privately insured patients were most likely to receive such counseling, followed by Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Currently, medical nutrition therapy is only available to Medicare patients with diabetes and end-stage renal disease, the researchers note.
“During my long career as a registered dietitian, I have been so grateful to see how many patients have benefited from medical nutrition therapy. However, it saddens both my patients and me to see the vast majority being turned away because they have to pay out of pocket or cannot afford medical nutrition therapy. [dietary counseling] “It’s through Medicare,” says researcher Gita Sikand, R.D., a clinical associate professor in the department of cardiology at the University of California, Irvine.
Researchers found that nearly half of American adults have a poor diet, so making healthy, nutritious food choices can have a big impact on heart health.
“Lifestyle is the cornerstone of cardiovascular disease prevention,” says Brandt. “Without providing counseling to help patients change their food choices, many patients lose the ability to take control of their nutrition. Hopefully, we will see a shift in that healthy eating is better supported and more attainable.”
For more information
The American Heart Association has more information on heart-healthy eating.
Source: University of Michigan, news release, June 3, 2024
