Preventive Nutrition in Nazi Germany: A Public Health Commentary

Nazi medicine invokes images of horrific experiments carried out by SS (Schutzstaffel) doctors like Josef Mengele in the concentration camps. Against this background of atrocity visited on some populations, the contributions made by Nazi public health activists and food philosophers were considered one of the most aggressive public health movements in the world. Nazi public health promotion and education were involved in activities that we might today view as socially responsible within the fields of preventive medicine. The dietetic sciences may be regarded as one of the least examined aspects of public health during the period of the Third Reich. This brief commentary explores the forgotten aspects of preventive nutrition under Nazi Germany and its implications within the current public health framework and dietetic practice