Despite diet being the leading cause of death in America, most physicians receive little to no formal nutrition training. A groundbreaking new study published in JAMA Open Network involving 37 medical educators and nutrition scientists from Harvard, Tufts, and international partners has identified 36 essential nutrition competencies that all medical trainees should master. This research responds directly to a 2022 bipartisan Congressional resolution calling for "meaningful physician and health professional education on nutrition and diet," addressing the critical gap where medical schools have historically treated nutrition as a "separate allied health field" rather than core medical knowledge. Dr. Linda Shiue's pioneering Culinary Medicine course at Kaiser Permanente already demonstrates the transformative potential—simple interventions like eliminating sugary drinks can lead to 30+ pound weight loss and dramatic improvements in diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer risk, proving that when patients trust their doctors for nutrition advice, it can "change the course of everyone's health."