14-Week IMS Lecture Series Aimed At Educating Physicians On Low-Carb Therapy
Filed under: Health — @ December 16, 2010
One of the most frequently-asked questions I’ve received from my readers over the years is, “Where can I find a good low-carb doctor in my area?”. If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that question, then I’d be a very rich man. After receiving e-mail after e-mail from people sincerely wanting to find a low-carb physician who will help treat their obesity, diabetes, and other health conditions, I decided to take matters into my own hands and create a resource allowing patients to tap into a network of medical doctors, chiropractors, and nurses who subscribe to carbohydrate-restriction. I call it the “List of Low-Carb Doctors” blog and it has continued to grow steadily over the past few years as I’ve added new names each week. I’m thinking of including nutritionists, dietitians, and health coaches who subscribe to this way of eating on that site as well to give people even more options for finding quality care for their weight and health needs.
Attempting to persuade more physicians to take a closer look at the low-carb diet as an effective therapy to use with their patients is an organization called Innovative Metabolic Solutions (IMS). They exist as a way to connect doctors with quality information about the science supporting carbohydrate-restriction by engaging them in a series of education classes devoted to teaching them about high-fat, moderate protein, low-carb living. Dr. Mary Vernon from Lawrence, Kansas and Dr. Eric Westman from Durham, North Carolina are two of the most prominent practitioners in the United States using a low-carb diet therapy to treat obesity and diabetes. Now they’ve teamed up to co-teach a 14-week medical module called Pathophysiology and Treatment of Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Based on the Carbohydrate Hypothesis.
This series is aimed directly at physicians and medical professionals who would like to learn more about why low-carb works and how to implement these strategies with their patients. A total of 10 unites of CME credit for each of the 14 sessions is available through joint sponsorship with the American Society of Bariatric Physicians (ASBP). This class includes an extensive bibliography and a video presentation by Drs. Vernon and Westman. Here’s a complete listing of each of the 14 modules:
1. Epidemics of Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, and Metabolic Syndrome
2. Pathophysiology of Glucose Intolerance, Metabolic Syndrome, and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
3. Basics of Nutrition: What the Body Really Needs
4. Science of Dietary Carbohydrate, Glucose and Insulin
5. Physiology of Carbohydrate Restriction
6. Ketone Bodies
7. Clinical Effects of Carbohydrate Restriction
8. Low-carb Diet Research 1: Low-carb and Low-fat Diets
9. Low-carb Diet Research 2: Beyond Weight Loss
10. Clinical Implementation of Carbohydrate Restriction: Getting Started
11. Clinical Implementation of Carbohydrate Restriction: Medication Management
12. Behavioral Tools for Lifestyle Modification
13. Reimbursement Issues
14. Pediatric Obesity Evaluation and Treatment
As you can see, this is a critically important series for physicians who want to give their patients a way to naturally cure many of the health woes they are facing. Each session includes readings from a comprehensive bibliography of relevant publications, a PowerPoint presentation and a lecture by Dr. Vernon and Dr. Westman. The entire process happens through IMS’s website at your convenience and each session builds upon previous sessions. That’s why it is recommended that you take all 14 to obtain the maximum benefit. To help encourage that among physicians, IMS has lowered the regular cost of $2,800 for the 14-week series by 20% for a total of $2,240 if you sign up by December 31, 2010. Keep in mind this price is for CME credit for medical professionals. If you’re a non-medical layperson and not interested in obtaining CME, then you can still participate at a discounted rate of only $840.
E-mail Jeff Clinger at IMS if you’re interested in learning more about the 14-week module. This is one of the most comprehensive medical education classes on low-carb diets in the entire world taught by two world-renowned practitioners of low-carb living! What a fantastic way for doctors to expand their low-carb knowledge so they have a solid starting point for using this therapy with their patients. I’m excited to see the kind of impact IMS will have on the medical profession in the years to come.
