«Large retailers and food supplement manufacturers are ready for the impact with the medical world but we have to ask ourselves if doctors are themselves ready and informed». He claims it Dario Chiriaco president of the Order of Doctors of Rieti and coordinator of the consultation which in Fnomceo deals with non-conventional medicines.
«Following the lines of what happened for homeopathy, where awareness is the result of a process started in 2002 and earlier, I have long proposed that the curriculum of doctors in the training course in general medicine include knowledge of this sector, and that informative elements on the subject are also introduced in the fifth or sixth year of the medical study course, but the universities have so far not followed up on the request», says Chiriacò. Which we reach the day after the presentation of the Coop Health Project: a campaign aimed at promoting two lines of milk and baby food and two others of yoghurt to family doctors, paediatricians, nutritionists, gastroenterologists and even gynecologists. To make doctors better aware of food remedies against cholesterol or constipation, or intolerance-proof foods on the supermarket counter, the consultancy firm Sprim expects to activate 900,000 contacts in total.
Vito Pappalepore Fimmg training manager in Lombardy, confirms that the promotion of supplements is increasing in the family doctor's newspaper, «even if the main vehicle is the TV, a hammering with simple messages with immediate effect. After all, these are products, in particular some for the reduction of cholesterol, whose effect tested by literature studies of 9% is close to that announced by the commercials, of 10%, and in these cases the doctor has no problem recommending them. Among other things, unlike drugs, they do not have significant adverse effects. It is also interesting that it is a distributor and not a manufacturer who carries the promotion».
However, Chiriacò points out the absence of guidelines for the profession on how to behave in recommending these products, unlike in the field of non-conventional medicines. «If in the case of homeopathic products we are talking about drugs on which there is now ministerial legislation in Italy, and a Fnomceo guideline will soon be released, for "nutraceuticals" we are less prepared and, waiting for the renewed top management to deal with of the emerging topic, I stress how important it would be to make the problem known to local doctors, in view of the growing role that nutrition and healthy lifestyles will play in prevention".
Mauro Miserendino – Saturday, 24 January 2015 – Doctor33
