DISCUSSION Saturday, May 27, 3:15-4:45
Considerations for the Incorporation of Dietary and
Nutritional Supplements Guidelines into an Integrative Medicine Research
Model
Speakers: Joel Edman, DSc, Daniel Monti, MD, Iris Bell,
MD, PhD
Nutritional therapies, including specific dietary
guidelines and a targeted dietary supplement program, are important
foundation approaches to chronic illnesses in Integrative Medicine.
Therefore, it is essential to incorporate nutritional guidelines into
research that evaluates the efficacy of integrative medical programs.
While dietary guidelines can pose research challenges,
there are ways to address conflicting dietary recommendations, effectively
quantify dietary intake and assess subject compliance. A lack of attention
to diet ultimately leads to research that does not accurately illustrate
integrative medical practice and this may decrease the potential influence
or benefits that a truly integrative therapeutic program can produce.
This featured discussion will therefore present
and discuss important issues that should be considered when including
nutritional guidelines into complementary and integrative medicine research.
These issues include:
1. determining and implementing dietary guidelines;
2. determining the dietary supplement program;
3. research design options; and
4. circumstances in which different levels of nutritional guidelines
may be considered.
To facilitate the discussion and illustrate
how the issues described above could be addressed, the presenters will
focus on Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) and menopause. Recent research
that has been published on these disorders will be presented with a
discussion of possible approaches that could have been included to evaluate
dietary and nutritional supplement guideline influences. Specific dietary
and supplement factors for FMS will include rotation and/or elimination
diets, glucose tolerance, healthy fats (omega 3s and monounsaturated
fat), and a targeted dietary supplement program of a multivitamin and
mineral, fish oil and a calcium/magnesium supplement. Specific factors
for menopause will include dietary isoflavones and lignans, healthy
fats, and glucose tolerance, as well as a targeted supplement program.
The discussion that follows will then focus on FMS and menopause, although
time permitting, it could then be open to apply these issues to other
disorders such as IBS, migraine headaches, MS, metabolic syndrome, and/or
cancer.
It is the goal of this featured discussion to
present and discuss important research considerations related to the
incorporation of nutrition into an integrative medicine model that more
accurately assesses the clinical practice of integrative medicine.