A Study of United States Registered Dietitian Nutritionists during COVID-19: From Impact to Adaptation.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced an unprecedented health crisis, requiring many Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) to expand their duties and services, while other RDNs faced unemployment, reduced hours, and changes to their work environment. This study evaluated whether the pandemic impacted RDNs' weight, eating behaviors, and psychological factors, and whether professional training as an RDN was perceived as a protective factor in maintaining healthy habits. A 57-item, cross-sectional, online questionnaire including open-ended questions was distributed to RDNs residing in the United States. Over two months (January 2021 to February 2021), 477 RDNs completed the questionnaire. Among RDNs, 68.5% reported no weight change, 21.4% reported weight gain greater than 5 pounds, and 10.3% reported weight loss greater than 5 pounds. Approximately 75% (n = 360) reported their RDN professional training equipped them with the skills needed to maintain healthy eating behaviors. Reduced physical activity and mental health were the top qualitative themes that emerged regarding reasons for weight change. These findings suggest that RDN professional practice skills may have conferred some personal health benefits, as evidenced by smaller weight gains, the maintenance of healthy habits, and fewer reporting psychological effects relative to the general population and other health professionals, thereby limiting the impact of pandemic-induced work and life disruptions.

Evaluation of dietary supplement, functional food and herbal medicine use by dietitians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: The current study was conducted to evaluate the dietary habits of the dietitians who had a leading role in this regard during the pandemic and their use of dietary supplements, functional food and herbal medicines. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. An online questionnaire was used as a data collection tool to identify the participants' socio-demographic characteristics, health statuses and dietary habits and their use of dietary supplements, functional foods and herbal medicines. SETTING: Turkey. PARTICIPANTS: The study population was 550 dietitians. RESULTS: In the current study, the participants' average age was 30·6 ± 9·1 years, and most of them (88·2 %) were women. More than half of the participants (88·9 %) thought that adequate and balanced nutrition would positively affect the course of COVID-19. To avoid COVID-19, 94·5 % of the dietitians used dietary supplements, 46·1 % herbal medicines and 34·9 % functional foods during the pandemic. The most commonly used dietary supplement was fish oil (81·9 %), functional food was vegetables and fruits (80·5 %) and the herbal medicine was cinnamon (63·5 %). Women's consumption of functional foods was approximately twice higher compared with men (95 % Cl: 1·048, 4·165; P < 0·05). The findings showed that the longer the dietitians were in their careers, the more functional foods and herbal medicines they used. CONCLUSION: During the pandemic, dietitians' use of foods with protective effects against diseases increased depending on their academic knowledge and experience in nutrition. The findings obtained in the current study suggest that an expert's opinion should be obtained before using dietary supplements and herbal medicines.

Wellbeing at Work before and during the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic: A Brazilian Nationwide Study among Dietitians.

This study aimed to evaluate the perceptions of dietitians' wellbeing at work before and during the SARS-COV-2 pandemic in Brazil. This cross-sectional study was performed using a previously validated instrument to investigate the wellbeing of dietitians at work in Brazil. The questionnaire on the wellbeing of dietitians was composed of 25 items (with a 5-point scale), characteristics, and questions about the SARS-COV-2 period. The application was carried out with GoogleForms® tool from 26 May to 7 June 2020. The weblink to access the research was sent via email, messaging apps, and social networks. Volunteers were recruited nationwide with the help of the Brazilian Dietitians Councils, support groups, as well as media outreach to reach as many dietitians as possible. Volunteers received, along with the research link, the invitation to participate, as well as the consent form. A representative sample of 1359 dietitians from all the Brazilian regions answered the questionnaire-mostly female (92.5%), Catholic (52.9%), from 25 to 39 years old (58.4%), with a partner (63.8%), and with no children (58%). Most of the participants continue working during the pandemic period (83.8%), but they did not have SARS-COV-2 (96%), nor did their family members (80.7%). The wellbeing at work before SARS-COV-2 was 3.88 ± 0.71, statistically different (p < 0.05) from during the pandemic, with the wellbeing of 3.71 ± 0.78. Wellbeing at work was higher before the pandemic for all the analyzed variables. Analyzing variables separately before and during the pandemic, dietitians with partners, children and a Ph.D. presented higher scores for wellbeing at work. Professionals receiving more than five times the minimum wage have higher scores. During the pandemic, better wellbeing was observed for dietitians working remotely.