The University of Miami Miller School of Medicine integrates nutrition medicine within its innovative NextGenMD curriculum. This comprehensive approach equips future physicians with practical, evidence-based competencies that support education about disease prevention, treatment optimization, and patient well-being.
Nested within a larger lifestyle medicine framework, the three phases of nutrition content are intentionally woven across all four years of training to make it a core, mandatory and sustainable element of medical student education.
“Nutrition shapes risk, treatment response, and recovery across nearly every disease we treat. Embedding nutrition science into medical training ensures physicians are prepared to translate evidence into meaningful, everyday clinical care.”
Objectives
- Develop clinical nutrition and lifestyle competency: Students will develop proficiency in nutrition assessment, evidence-based dietary counseling, and lifestyle behavior change strategies that support disease prevention and chronic disease management.
- Translate nutrition science into patient-centered practice: We emphasize the translation of rigorous nutrition education into actionable dietary guidance, enabling learners to confidently guide patients in making sustainable nutrition and lifestyle changes that align with current clinical evidence.
- Foster experiential learning through nutrition medicine: Hands-on cooking labs and applied food-as-medicine workshops enhance students’ ability to turn scientific knowledge into everyday skills for themselves and their patients, and boost confidence in counseling about diet and health.
Why This Matters
The Miller School's nutrition curriculum empowers future clinicians to address diet-related chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and others — conditions that account for a significant portion of preventable morbidity and mortality.