Importance of Using Standardized Terminology to Describe the Physician Specializing in Clinical Nutrition

For a specialty to emerge and gain recognition, use of common accepted terminology is important. Over the past decades, several terms have been coined by different societies to describe the physician who is specializing in the field of clinical nutrition (Table 1). The designation of nutrition support physician was originated by the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (A.S.P.E.N.) and the National Board of Nutrition Support Certification (NBNSC) in 1984 to identify physicians who devote a significant part of their professional activi-ties to nutrition support.1 With the creation of a single examination by the NBNSC, the generic terms nutritio