Nutrition Support in UK Pharmacy Practice: Current Practices and Future Needs

Acar, G ORCID: 0000-0003-2399-4530, Frost, R ORCID: 0000-0003-3523-0052, Kaur Bhamra, S and Heinrich, M (2026) Nutrition Support in UK Pharmacy Practice: Current Practices and Future Needs. Public Health Nutrition. pp. 1-33. ISSN 1368-9800

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Abstract

Objective: To examine pharmacy professionals’ involvement in nutrition care, including the nutrition advice and services they provide, perceived barriers and facilitators, and resource needs for integrating nutrition into pharmacy practice. Design: Mixed-methods cross-sectional survey comprising quantitative items on knowledge, attitudes and practices, and open-ended questions analysed thematically. Setting: Online survey administered via Qualtrics.

Participants: UK-based pharmacy professionals aged ≥18 years (N = 220).

Results: Nutrition advice was most frequently provided for diabetes (68.4%), cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors (64.1%), dietary supplements (49.3%) and weight management (48.3%). Knowledge was strongest for food–drug interactions and supplements, but weakest for sustainable diets and national dietary guidelines. Higher perceived knowledge was significantly associated with providing advice on diabetes, obesity, CVD and malnutrition (all p < 0.05). Nutritional assessment practices were limited: 67.7% of participants did not conduct nutritional screening, and 70.2% did not perform dietary assessments. Overall, 65.3% reported that nutrition training is essential. Key barriers included limited education, practical resources, unclear referral pathways, and challenges initiating nutrition conversations, while respondents highlighted strong needs for practice-specific tools and collaboration with dietitians.

Conclusions: Pharmacists commonly provide nutrition support for key NCD areas, yet provision remains inconsistent. Persistent gaps in knowledge, training, and practical resources, combined with unclear referral pathways, limit their capacity to deliver nutrition care. Strengthening nutrition education, developing pharmacy-focused resources, and enhancing interprofessional collaboration could enable more effective, integrated nutrition support in primary care.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	4206 Public Health; 32 Biomedical and Clinical Sciences; 3210 Nutrition and Dietetics; 42 Health Sciences; Diabetes; Obesity; Dietary Supplements; Nutrition; Clinical Research; Heart Disease; Cardiovascular; Aging; Health Services; Prevention; 3.3 Nutrition and chemoprevention; Generic health relevance; Metabolic and endocrine; Cardiovascular; 2 Zero Hunger; 11 Medical and Health Sciences; Nutrition & Dietetics; 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences; 42 Health sciences
Subjects:	T Technology > TX Home economics > TX341 Nutrition. Foods and food supply R Medicine > RS Pharmacy and materia medica
Divisions:	Nursing, Public and Allied Health
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date of acceptance:	10 May 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	3 September 2026
Date Deposited:	03 Sep 2026 13:03
Last Modified:	03 Sep 2026 13:03
DOI or ID number:	10.1017/S1368980026103358
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29308

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