Course Structure
This course is organized into six modules plus this introduction. Each module builds on the previous one, but the modules are also designed to stand alone as reference material once you have completed the course. The sequence moves from foundational science (Modules 1 and 2) through clinical application (Modules 3 and 4) to historical and systemic context (Modules 5 and 6).
Module 1 covers the biochemistry of metabolic health: macronutrient metabolism, the Insulin/ROS Hypothesis, and the mitochondrial basis of insulin resistance. This is the hardest module in the course. If you find it challenging, that is expected. Return to it after completing the clinical modules, and it will make more sense in context.
Module 2 covers clinical assessment: how to read a metabolic panel, which biomarkers actually predict disease, and how to identify insulin resistance years before it meets the diagnostic criteria for prediabetes or diabetes. This module is immediately clinically useful.
Why Mechanism Comes Before Measurement
You may notice that the biochemistry module (Module 1) precedes the clinical assessment module (Module 2), and wonder whether it would be more intuitive to encounter a patient problem first and then learn the science that explains it. That is a reasonable instinct, and it reflects how many clinical courses are structured. We have chosen the opposite sequence deliberately.
The clinical tools in Module 2, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, continuous glucose monitoring, advanced lipid fractionation, only make sense if you already understand what they are measuring. A fasting insulin of 18 mIU/L looks unremarkable on a standard lab report. It is only alarming if you understand that chronic hyperinsulinemia drives mitochondrial electron transport chain overflow, which produces superoxide, which impairs insulin signaling, which demands even more insulin. Without that mechanistic foundation, Module 2 becomes a list of tests. With it, the tests become a window into a specific biological process that you can intervene on.
"Your job is not to memorize a new set of dietary rules. Your job is to understand the evidence well enough to evaluate it critically, apply it judiciously, and update your practice as the evidence evolves.
The same logic applies throughout the course. The disease protocols in Module 3 are not arbitrary dietary rules; they are applications of the biochemistry in Module 1. The counseling frameworks in Module 4 work because they are grounded in a clear mechanistic explanation that physicians can share with patients. The history in Module 5 is only legible if you already understand what the science actually shows. Mechanism first is the right sequence for this material.
Module 3 covers disease-specific protocols: how to prescribe dietary interventions for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, NAFLD, PCOS, and other metabolic conditions. It includes the evidence base for each protocol and the practical details of implementation.
Module 4 covers patient counseling: how to have the dietary conversation, how to handle resistance, and how to use the Harvard Program on Negotiation framework to reach agreements that patients will actually follow.
Module 5 covers the history of nutritional science: how the current dietary consensus was constructed, which evidence was suppressed, and what the 2026 HHS dietary guidelines reset means for clinical practice.
Module 6 covers food systems and physician advocacy: the upstream forces that shape the food environment, the role of agricultural subsidies, and what physicians can do beyond the clinic.
How to Study
Each section is designed to be read in fifteen to twenty minutes. After each section, use the flashcard review to reinforce the key concepts before moving on. After each module, complete the module quiz. The quiz is not a gate: you can skip it and return to it later. But you cannot receive your CME certificate until all six module quizzes have been completed and the post-test has been passed.
The clinical case vignettes are the most valuable part of the course for building practical skill. Each case presents a real patient scenario with branching decision points. Work through them honestly. The cases are designed to surface the gaps between what you know and what you need to know, and to make those gaps visible before you encounter them in clinic.
The narration feature is available on every section. If you prefer to listen while commuting or exercising, tap the speaker icon at the top of any section to hear it read aloud. You can adjust the playback speed.
A Note on Uncertainty
This course presents the best available evidence on metabolic health and nutrition. In some areas, the evidence is strong and the consensus is clear. In others, the evidence is preliminary, the mechanistic models are contested, and the clinical recommendations are necessarily provisional. Where this is the case, the course says so explicitly.
The Insulin/ROS Hypothesis, for example, is a compelling and well-supported mechanistic framework, but it is not universally accepted. The evidence for carbohydrate restriction in type 2 diabetes is strong, but the optimal macronutrient composition for long-term metabolic health remains an active area of research. The history of nutritional science should make any physician appropriately humble about the certainty of current recommendations.
Your job is not to memorize a new set of dietary rules. Your job is to understand the evidence well enough to evaluate it critically, apply it judiciously, and update your practice as the evidence evolves. That is what this course is designed to teach.