Undergraduate - UnitNUT3002 - Diet and the management of chronic disease

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2014 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

print version

6 points, SCA Band 2, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered, or view unit timetables.

Level	Undergraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational Unit	Department of Nutrition and Dietetics
Offered	Clayton First semester 2014 (Day)
Coordinator(s)	Dr Lisa Ryan

Synopsis

Diet and disease is an integrated study of the role of diet in the causation and treatment of chronic diseases that are endemic in westernised societies. This unit builds upon the scientific concept of disease aetiology explored in Integrated Science Systems (BND2103) and the critical interpretation of scientific literature and research skills developed in years 1 and 2. Learners will explore the epidemiology of the major nutrition related diseases, their causal pathways and population based recommendation for prevention. The rationale for the application of dietary modifications for patients with specific disease states and the means of evaluating dietary treatment is explored. Nutrition related emerging issues in disease aetiology and management are also explored and the emphasis on the important role of genetic susceptibility in nutrition science is continued.

Student centered teaching and learning methods will be used to support the delivery of the unit content. Students' participation as adult learners will be encouraged through the curricula with emphasis on extending their scientific communication skills.

Outcomes

Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

Outline the role of diet in the aetiology, primary and secondary prevention, and management of major lifestyle related chronic disease and the strengths and limitations of diet in the prevention and management of conditions
Explore lifestyle and additional risk factors implicated in chronic disease aetiology
Integrate the science of the metabolic and molecular interactions implicated in chronic disease
Explore the role of genetics and nutrition (nutrigenomics) in the development of disease
Discuss the functional role of nutriceuticals in disease management and prevention
Apply the epidemiology, medical and nutritional principles in the nutritional management of chronic lifestyle related diseases conditions
Investigate appropriate dietary assessment methodologies in chronic disease
Discuss emerging trends in diet related disease risk and treatment approaches
Analyse and interpret the scientific literature using an evidence based approach
Synthesise the scientific evidence and dietary assessment methodologies into practical research tools and nutrition education.

Assessment

Scientific essay (3,000 words) (30%)
Development of an evidence based nutritional resourse (eg dietary assessment tool, pamphlet) for specific population groups (20%)
End of semester examination (50%)

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Lisa Ryan

Workload requirements

Lectures: 3 hours/week, Tutorials: 1 hour/week, SDL: 10 hours/week.

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Nutrition and dietetics

Prerequisites

Must pass BND1002, BND1101, BND2002 and BND2103
or
BND1010 and a combination of any two relevant units (at the discretion of the unit convenor) from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences with a biochemistry and physiology component such as: PHY2032, PHY2042, BMS2031, BMS2021, BCH2022.