Nutritional intervention: what of the future?

Abstract

In the practice of nutritional intervention as it relates to the sick patient, the future is today! Predicting future developments in nutritional intervention depends on technical innovations, yet to be realized, which will facilitate the implementation of advances in nutritional support. These innovations include delivery devices, ranging from catheters to packaging and enhanced nutrient substrate composition, based on greater understanding of their function in health and disease. But, by merely expanding the use of contemporary nutritional support to the field of obstetrics, heart disease, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and bone marrow transplantation (BMT), we can immediately amplify our application of nutritional intervention, bringing the future to it. This would benefit patient populations in whom nutritional support is not routinely considered, despite medical evidence to the contrary.