Research in Clinical Nutrition: Valuable?

[RyanMT]

Hey folks,

I am already accepted into SLU Medical School, so I am none too concerned about acceptance. I am, however, concerned about my rather limited research experience. It is my understanding that research experience can be crucial to getting some of the more competitive residencies, and also that research experience gives rise to more, better research opportunities.

Alongside my medical interests, I have a very strong interest in clinical nutrition and fitness. To be frank, I do not really care about obesity, but I care about using diet and exercise to maintain optimum health. Nutrition will always be important to me, as I'm a big believer in the importance of preventive medicine - so long as it is grounded in science. I am currently teaching myself biochemistry using Lippincott's Illustrated Review and infrequently updating a blog about science-based nutrition, but I would really like to get involved with actual research rather than just reading about it all the time.

Do you think that pursuing research in the area of clinical nutrition (or preventive medicine) would be valuable, in the sense that a) I would obtain practical research-related knowledge, and b) I could use this knowledge/experience to leverage other opportunities I may desire to pursue in the future?

Thanks for any insight you can give! Sorry about the long post.

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[fortitude]

Any time you do research will help you gain 'research-related skills.' You'll learn how to use all of the equipment; you'll make connections with faculty, you'll learn how to write papers, etc.

I tried looking to see if SLU MS has any research in nutrition going on, but I got tired of the website.

But yeah, any sort of research in nutrition has to be useful. I'm sure you are well aware of all the various malnutrition disorders that need recognition and treating. And if you are interested in nutrition and want to do research, then you should do it.

Ask the current clinical nutrition researchers about it, or look at what they are doing. I don't know how they are so I can't provide insight.

 

[RyanMT]

Any time you do research will help you gain 'research-related skills.' You'll learn how to use all of the equipment; you'll make connections with faculty, you'll learn how to write papers, etc.

I tried looking to see if SLU MS has any research in nutrition going on, but I got tired of the website.

But yeah, any sort of research in nutrition has to be useful. I'm sure you are well aware of all the various malnutrition disorders that need recognition and treating. And if you are interested in nutrition and want to do research, then you should do it.

Ask the current clinical nutrition researchers about it, or look at what they are doing. I don't know how they are so I can't provide insight.

Thank you for the response (and consequent encouragement). The website is a big pain, but I'll email some of the faculty and see what they are up to and if there are any projects I can help out with.