• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Dietitians for Professional Integrity

  • Home
  • Our Team
  • Resources
    • Advocacy & Action Toolkit
    • Conflict-Free CEUs
    • Distinguished Dietitians
    • Ethical Sponsorship
    • FNCE Guides & Reports
    • Like-Minded Organizations
    • RD Resource Toolkit
    • Statements of Concern
    • Understand The Issues
  • Contact
  • FAQ
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Search

Feb 26, 2013 Leave a Comment

Statement of Concern from Suzanne Dixon, MPH, RD

Today’s statement of concern comes from Suzanne Dixon, MPH, RD (Twitter handle @NoNutritionFear):

“I’ve been a member of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and a registered dietitian for 15 years. Over that time, I have witnessed many changes within the organization, as well as shifts in how the organization is perceived by others. Unfortunately, these have not always been for the better.

Foremost among the negative changes is the increasing prominence of sponsors who create and promote products that have nothing to do with good nutrition. I use the word “product,” because many of these items shouldn’t even be considered food. They provide no nourishment and in many cases, their consumption damages health.

Regardless of whether these large corporate and agribusiness sponsors influence the policy and work of the Academy—and I believe they do—the perception of influence is extremely harmful. These associations diminish our credibility and tarnish our profession. It is difficult to be taken seriously as a food and nutrition expert when so many of our activities bear the emblems of these sponsors, companies best known for junk food and beverages.

It is telling that I find it so difficult to be taken seriously as a registered dietitian that in professional contexts, I nearly always introduce myself as an epidemiologist first, and a dietitian second. It distresses me to do this, but not nearly as much as it bothers me to be judged negatively because of the association between my professional organization and sponsors that promote health-damaging products.

I am ready for change. I believe the time is right for change. I hope that through the efforts of this group and others, the Academy will understand that this issue can no longer be ignored. The future of our profession, and our ability to positively influence the health of Americans are at stake.”

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Categories: Statements of Concern

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

sidebar

Blog Sidebar

Social Media

FacebookTwitter

Subscribe to receive our quarterly newsletter and other breaking news!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Browse by Topic

  • Academic Research
  • Advocacy
  • Distinguished Dietitians
  • Ethical Sponsorship
  • Industry Spin
  • Industry-Funded Research
  • Interviews
  • Photos
  • Problematic Sponsorship
  • Recommended Reads
  • Reports
  • Statements of Concern
  • Uncategorized

Tags

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics American Beverage Association Andy Bellatti Big Tobacco California Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Center for Science in the Public Interest CEUs Civil Eats Coca-Cola ConAgra conflicts of interest Corn Refiners Association FNCE front groups General Mills Global Energy Balance Network Hershey's industry-funded research junk food Kellogg Kids Eat Right Kraft Kraft Singles lobbying Marion Nestle marketing marketing to children Mars McDonald's meat industry Michele Simon moderation National Dairy Council Nestlé New York Times PepsiCo policy soda soda tax soda taxes sugar The Sugar Association Unilever World Health Organization Yoni Freedhoff

Footer

Subscribe to receive our quarterly newsletter and other breaking news!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Recent Posts

Farewell to Our Supporters

Dear DFPI Supporters, Since February of 2013, we at Dietitians For Professional Integrity have been a voice for uplifting the registered dietitian credential at a time when corporate influences - both overt and covert Read More

Highly Processed Foods Can Negatively Impact Health

Good read from New York Times on how highly processed foods (and the ingredients in many of them) can negatively impact health by creating an imbalance in the gut microbiome. This is the future of nutrition. The fact Read More

Social Media

FacebookTwitter

RSS

  • RSS - Posts

© 2021 Dietitians for Professional Integrity