Physical Therapists have a role in nutrition – this was recently reaffirmed by the American Physical Therapy Association’s position statement:
THE ROLE OF THE PHYSICAL THERAPIST IN DIET AND NUTRITION HOD P06-15-22-17 [Position] Diet and nutrition are key components of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of many conditions managed by physical therapists. It is the role of the physical therapist to screen for and provide information on diet and nutritional issues to patients, clients, and the community within the scope of physical therapist practice. This includes appropriate referrals to nutrition and dietary medical professionals when the required advice and education lie outside the education level of the physical therapist.
Simply put, as experts in human movement we must recognize that what we put into our body (FUEL) plays an important role in what our body can do (MOVE, RECOVER), whether we will ENDURE and how we CONNECT with the world around us. What we eat has a role in whether we will flourish and thrive.
And so….we think it’s time to take that conversation further: