The Nutrition and Physical Activity Project
Nutrition and exercise go hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly. Eating a nutritious diet and doing regular physical activity are two lifestyle behaviors that can stave off cardiometabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Unfortunately, most adults are not meeting population-based diet and exercise recommendations.
Recently, AND (the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) has partnered with ACE (the American Council on Exercise) to create an evidence-based guideline and systematic review on nutrition and physical activity treatments for general population adults.
Despite adults’ desire to gain and maintain good health, individuals face barriers to moving forward with lifestyle behaviors. Consumers may be misled or confused by biased and ever-changing research information and the media.
Qualified nutrition and exercise professionals can help adults overcome barriers to achieving lifestyle changes by offering regular, evidenced-based education and services that are individualized to improve outcomes for their clients. These services are practical and sustainable as they include available research, clinical expertise, and the values of clients.
The Guideline
The EBNPG (evidence-based nutrition practice guideline) will be used to lead practice decisions for exercise and nutrition professionals who offer diet and activity programs for adults 18 and over who are healthy or have cardiometabolic risk factors including overweight (BMI equal to 25 or greater or as defined for the certain population), pre-diabetes, and pre-hypertension. EBNPG will not focus on adults with an established disease diagnosis.
Tips for using the guideline recommendations can be downloaded here: Nutrition and Physical Activity Interventions Practitioner Guide. The two-page guide was developed using concise, understandable language that will assist nutrition and exercise professionals and their clients/patients to collaboratively participate in nutrition care decisions.
Systematic Review
The goal of the systematic review was to find, classify, and evaluate research looking at nutrition and physical activity interventions offered by nutrition and exercise professionals together in adults in the general population (individuals with or without cardiometabolic disease risk factors but without diagnosed disease).
Key Findings of the Systematic Review:
Nutrition and physical activity interventions provided by dietitians or equivalent, qualified exercise practitioners and/or health coaches may increase physical activity amount and fruit and vegetable intake.
Nutrition and physical activity interventions provided by dietitians or equivalent, qualified exercise practitioners and/or health coaches are likely to improve anthropometric outcomes.
Nutrition and physical activity interventions provided by dietitians or equivalent, qualified exercise practitioners and/or health coaches may have no effect on quality of life or anxiety/depression.
Interventions provided by a dietitian with or without an exercise practitioner resulted in significant improvements for nearly all outcomes measured, but there was little information available on the efficacy of interventions delivered by health coaches.
Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD
Check out more exercise resources and a free handout here.