Joining Nutrition Education with Medication Use – The Missing Piece for GLP1 Success
by IDS Director of Lifestyle and Nutrition, Jenny Smith
As an RD, CDCES for a long time (20 years and counting), I have often thought of the lack of follow-through for many of the medical conditions that are impacted by nutrition. In fact, all conditions in some way or another are affected by what we put in our mouths, or what most people call food.
The disconnect struck me early on as I was seeing patients in acute care, a hospital setting where many conditions can be a part of the health of one individual. Why was I not getting a consult on every person who was there?
The simple truth is that there are not enough RD, CDCES’s and there is not enough time in acute patient care. But, deeper is the fact that there is not enough link in the medical mind to warrant the consult that in many cases could have proven valuable to that person and their longevity.
https://integrateddiabetes.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/GLP1-Success.png
Thus, my interest in an article, “why 4 medical societies issued a joint advisory on nutrition and GLP-1 therapy for obesity,”. and the clinical joint advisory team’s effort to go beyond writing a prescription and actually studying the impact of adequate education structured around activity, healthy eating and mental well-being.
This advisory team was, of course, put together to evaluate success with the very popular GLP1 meds for obesity.
What struck me was that finally, value was being shown for connecting the dots. Not only can the medication help, but lo and behold, if the person is taught that their lifestyle choices make a difference in long-term success, they are likely to stick with the changes and the medication as prescribed.
One of the authors, Dr. Jonathan Bonnett, MD, MPH (board-certified family sports, obesity and lifestyle medicine physician), notes something that most RDs could have told anyone for years before this…
“Optimizing outcomes with these agents requires more than prescribing.”
I wish more physicians had his insight, which seems to have come with the use of the GLP1 meds and the question of who succeeds long-term. He notes, “It’s not just about prescribing the medicine and seeing what happens. Patients need support resources”.
I’d take that a step further and note that even just a printed resource is not enough. To really optimize GLP1 use and dare I say, most meds for chronic health conditions, the support must be education with someone who understands how the med works, what the condition requires and how to teach long-term lifestyle change.
Medication alone is not the magic bullet, or we would have a much healthier population than we currently have in the US.
As these meds are prescribed more and more for type 1 diabetes, there should be an effort to educate all prescribing clinicians about the responsibility they have to ensure their patients know how to use the med and work toward goals. The GLP1s do not have a one-size-fits-all plan. It takes a lot of adjustment to find the right dose as well as the right GLP1 and to fit in all the changes to nutrition and activity that need to go along with the medication use.
In our IDS practice, we have seen a major uptick in the use of GLP1s with T1D.
What we have also seen is a deficit of proper follow-through from prescribers. We provide the education in lifestyle, activity, nutrition and mental health that is left out by the prescribing MD. I do not advocate for prescribers to also take on the lengthy job of education. I do, however, expect them to follow through with referrals to the correct educator in order to ensure their patient understands safe and effective use.
If you have questions about the lifestyle aspects for success in using your GLP1, give us a call at Integrated Diabetes Services. We have a team of clinicians who get it and can help you work towards your goals!
Back to August 2025 NewsletterSign Up For The IDS Monthly Newsletter!
