PEN® eNews 14(10) October 2024 - Thank you PEN Contributors!
PEN
® eNews is a monthly e-newsletter shared with the global PEN Community and created to help dietitians position themselves as leaders in evidence-based nutrition practice. In addition, users of the PEN System will find articles on the new evidence, resources and features available and how to maximize one's use of PEN.
Dietitians Make a Difference in Chronic Disease Management
The Question
What is the effectiveness of nutrition counselling given by dietitians (or international equivalent) for the management of chronic disease?
The Recommendation
Compared to usual care, nutrition counselling from a dietitian (or international equivalent) probably improves the following outcomes:
- blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) in adults with chronic kidney disease who are not receiving dialysis
- weight outcomes (waist circumference, percent weight loss, BMI) in adults with overweight or obesity who are involved in short-term (<12 months) weight management interventions
Compared to usual care, nutrition counselling from a dietitian (or international equivalent) may improve the following outcomes:
- blood lipids (total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides) and blood pressure (systolic blood pressure) in adults with dyslipidemia
- blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) and quality of life in adults with overweight or obesity who are involved in weight management interventions
- glycemic control (A1C, fasting blood glucose), cholesterol levels, blood pressure and weight outcomes (weight, waist circumference, BMI) in adults with prediabetes
- urinary sodium excretion, in adults with chronic kidney disease who are not receiving dialysis
Compared to nutrition advice from other health professionals, nutrition counselling from a dietitian (or international equivalent) may improve glycemic control (A1C) and weight outcomes (weight, BMI) in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Dietitian involvement may improve weight and dietary intake in individuals with eating disorders when coupled with psychological treatment, compared to psychological treatment alone.
Dietitian involvement may not affect triglycerides or progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes (compared to usual care) or LDL cholesterol, systolic blood pressure or diastolic blood pressure (compared to nutrition advice from other health professionals) in adults with type 2 diabetes. Similarly, dietitian involvement may not affect fasting blood glucose in adults involved in short-term (<12 months) weight management interventions.
Dietitian-delivered interventions may be cost-effective.
The Remarks
All but one systematic review included internationally equivalent certifications in their definition of a dietitian.
As with other weight management interventions, dietitian-delivered interventions have only been shown to reduce weight in the short term.
See Additional Content:
What is the effectiveness of dietary interventions for preventing or treating chronic disease in the primary care setting?
What is the recommended weight gain in pregnancy?
To see the full practice question, including the Evidence Statements, Comments and References, click here.
October is Global Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Are you up to date?
Did you know that the PEN System has an entire Knowledge Pathway (KP) dedicated to breast cancer? In addition to providing answers to five Practice Questions, the KP includes:
Breast Cancer Practice Questions
Assessment
Intervention
PEN® Team Surprising Findings
Elizabeth speaks with nutrition students across Canada about how the PEN System is essential to their dietetic training. Here's what Elizabeth has to say about students' experience with the PEN System:.
"When I speak to nutrition students, they are always curious about what they can say to address the misinformation on fad diets. I like to remind them that dietitians don't make stuff up. I show students how to use the best available evidence to inform clients decision-making. For example, there is a lack of evidence to support the use of detoxification diets and cleanses. This always leads to a good discussion about dietitians' vital role in arming themselves with credible, objective nutrition information the PEN system provides."
The PEN team develops content using knowledge translation best practices and evidence-based decision-making
The PEN Team develops content using best practices from the fields of knowledge translation and evidence-based decision-making. This five-step evidence-based process is used every time to ensure we are produing credible and objective content you can count on in your content.
Follow an overview of the PEN content development process in the image below or learn more about our rigorous process in the PEN Author’s Guide.
Thank you to our PEN® contributors
Our global PEN® partnership has benefited from volunteer efforts around the world. Please take a moment to read and acknowledge your colleagues who have to PEN content since January 2024:
Australia 
Lora Awad
Joanna Baker
Stephanie DeZilva
Kirsty Leray
Hannah Mayr
Racha Slim
Wendy Stuart-Smith
Mitchell Williams
United Kingdom 
Sue Acreman
Caterina Azevedo
James Bray
Maria Cazzulani
Emma Gaskin
Della-Marie Heck
Lisa Holmes
Rory Hornstein
Holly Jeffreys
Laura Kyte
Samantha McKinnon
Dona Mason
Megan Schoen
William Stivaletta
Nicky Wyer
Canada 
Dahlia Abou El Hassan
Marissa Alexander
Laura Atkinson
Sharmini Balakrishnan
Laurel Burton
Evita Basilio
Amanda Berger
Laura Bjorklund
Lynsay Clack
Mandy Megan Conyers-Smith
Kirby Ellis
Tanis Fenton
Rebecca Gravel
Geneviève Grégoire
Nikki Hang
Jennifer House
Michelle Jones
Arundhati Joshi
Alexandri Kelly
Stephanie Krug
Kimberly Lam
Alex Lacarte
Jasmine LeBlanc
Shée Lillejord
Kristen MacEachem
Anisha Mahajan
Anastasia Meeks
Marissa Alexander
Madelaine Morrish
Craig Pacheco
Victoria Philpott
Sandra Saville
Tameika Shaw
Deanne Ortman Snell
Nadina Villacis
Vianca Wagan
Lori Warford-Woolgar
Lucia Weiler
Lindsay Zalot
Leena Zaidi
Ouardia Zeggane
Have You Used our Calculators and Professional Tools?
Need to quickly calculate Resting Energy and Total Energy Expenditure? Protein Requirements for Critically Ill Adults? What about a refresher on metric conversions? Our list of useful calculators and professional tools is ready for quick and easy use in your daily practice. Have a look!
PEN eNews
October 2024 Volume
14 (10)
A Publication of the PEN® System Global Partners,
a collaborative partnership between International Dietetic Associations.
Learn more about PEN.
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