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E-Newsletter • August 2025 |
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Editor's E-Note
MTMs Offer Elegant Solutions
Recognition of the food as medicine movement and its importance among larger health care entities and institutions is long overdue. As an aspect of that movement, medically tailored meals (MTMs) have the power to address many top health-related concerns, including food insecurity. From their work as coauthors on an exciting new study, Monica Yepes-Rios, MD, medical director of community health and food as medicine at Cleveland Clinic, and Wendy Phillips, MS, RD, LD, FAND, FASPEN, regional vice president of Morrison Healthcare, share with Today’s Dietitian (TD) readers how their findings, published this year in Nutrition and Health, demonstrate the elegant solution MTMs provide in reducing health care spending, reducing hospital stays, and improving overall health in some of the most vulnerable populations.
After reading the article, visit TD’s website www.TodaysDietitian.com to read the digital edition of our August/September issue, featuring our dining guide for conference-goers planning their trip to Nashville this fall. You can also reminisce with TD’s 12th annual Spring Symposium recap, enjoying photo collages and quotes from attendees about their time in San Antonio this past May. Also in the issue, you’ll find intriguing feature stories on human trafficking as well as diabetes and shift work.
Please enjoy the E-Newsletter and give us your feedback at TDeditor@gvpub.com. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook and follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter.
— Heather Davis, MS, RDN, LDN, editor |
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| In This E-Newsletter
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New Research Addresses Food Insecurity Through Medically Tailored Meals
By Monica Yepes-Rios, MD, and Wendy Phillips, MS, RD, LD, FAND, FASPEN
Food insecurity remains a major issue across the country. According to the USDA, 12.8% of US households—about 17 million—experienced food insecurity in 2022, up from 10.2% in 2021.1 Children are especially vulnerable, with 8.8 million living in food-insecure households. Low-income communities, communities of color, and rural areas are disproportionately affected due to limited access to affordable and nutritious food, known as "food deserts."
To address this issue, Cleveland Clinic and Morrison Healthcare collaborated on a study assessing impact and feasibility of medically tailored meals (MTMs). The study provided personalized meals to meet the therapeutic needs of patients with obesity, diabetes, and other conditions. MTMs not only treat disease but also reduce health care costs and utilization. The research was recently published in Nutrition and Health.2
While MTMs have become more common over the past decade, most programs rely on philanthropic support, and the optimal parameters for these programs are not well-defined. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of an MTM program developed by a major health care institution using internal investments and an online platform for meal ordering.
By demonstrating their benefits, we can encourage broader adoption, leading to decreased health care utilization, cost savings, and improved patient satisfaction.
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Disarming a Hidden Killer: Predicting and Preventing C. diff Before It Strikes
Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) researchers are using personalized models to forecast gut colonization risk and test targeted probiotic therapies. Pathogen Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) infects more than 500,000 people in the United States each year and kills up to 30,000. It is a leading cause of health care-associated infections, particularly in hospitals and long term care facilities. But not everyone who harbors C. diff gets sick—as many as 30% to 40% of the population are carrying this bug right now in their gastrointestinal tract.
C. diff is what scientists call an opportunistic pathogen—capable of causing life-threatening illness, but also capable of existing quietly as a commensal organism in the gut—waiting for the right moment, like after a round of antibiotics, to wreak havoc.
GLP-1 Drugs Fail to Provide Key Long-Term Health Benefit
Popular GLP-1 drugs help many people lose substantial amounts of weight, but the drugs do not provide key improvements in heart and lung function essential for long-term health, University of Virginia (UVA) experts warn in a new paper.
The researchers emphasize that weight loss associated with GLP-1 drugs has many clear health benefits for people with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart failure, including improving blood-sugar control, short-term cardiorenal benefits, and improvements in survival outcomes. But doctors may need to consider recommending exercise programs or develop other approaches, such as nutrition support or complementary medications, to help GLP-1 patients get the full cardiorespiratory benefits of substantial weight loss over the long run, they say.
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CPE Monthly
Better understand food insecurity in older adults, including the risk factors and health effects, as well as food assistance programs and their impact in this month’s issue of Today’s Dietitian. Read the CPE Monthly article, take the 10-question online test at CE.TodaysDietitian.com/CPEmonthly, and earn two CPEUs!
2026 Spring Symposium
Time is almost up to take advantage of early-bird savings on registration for the 2026 Today’s Dietitian Spring Symposium in Orlando, Florida. Join your colleagues for four days of learning, camaraderie, networking, and more. Registration rates will be increasing from $249 to $399 on September 1st, so register today and secure your savings now!
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NutriCare
The NutriCare Tools app offers evidence, research, and knowledge-based tools that RDs can use in patient or client assessment and intervention for adults, children, and infants. The app can be used to calculate energy and fluid needs, track growth, calculate ideal body weight and more. Learn more »
Epocrates
The Epocrates app includes robust clinical guides and information about treatment regimens, herbal medicine, and potential interactions. Plus, RDs can use the many calculators available to save time and increase accuracy in day-to-day practice. Learn more » |
In the October Issue
• Life After Antiobesity Medications
• Preventing and Treating Diabetic Retinopathy
• Popular Herbal Supplements for Athletes
• The Impact of Regenerative Agriculture
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COVER STORY
Dining Out in Nashville
Get ready for a flavorful trip to Nashville! This guide spotlights can’t-miss dishes, music-filled restaurants, and local dietitian favorites.
FEATURE
Today’s Dietitian’s 12th Annual Spring Symposium
From cutting-edge science to vibrant networking, Today’s Dietitian’s 12th Annual Spring Symposium offered an intimate setting where nutrition pros connected, learned, and left inspired for the year ahead.
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