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Purpose: There must be a perfect balance between Food and Dietary supplements (DS) to ensure optimal well-being. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a webinar on the change in knowledge and attitude about the role of vitamins, minerals and DS among medical and nursing undergraduates so that they could bring about a positive change in popular practices, as well-informed Health Care Professionals (HCPs)., Materials and Methods: The study was a cross-sectional analytical study comprising 12 knowledge and 11 attitude questions administered to medical and nursing undergraduates with the help of semi-structured and pre-validated google form both before and after a webinar explaining the role of key nutrients and also the evidence and recommendations surrounding DS. Data were analyzed using STATA.12 to assess the impact of the webinar., Results: There were 415 participants, with 265 medical and 150 nursing students. There was a significant improvement both in the knowledge (4.95 (±1.45), 7.76 (±1.69) and attitude scores (pre-webinar mean score 31.8 (±5.57) post-webinar mean score 27.7 (±4.90))of the participants after the webinar. An overall positive correlation before the webinar changed to a more significant negative correlation, indicating a positive impact of the webinar (0.0054-0.0701)., Conclusion: The study suggests that continuing education informing various HCPs and undergraduate students about the absolute necessity of a diet rich in nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and probiotics is the need of the hour. Additionally, the efficacy and safety concerns, appropriate indications and dosages of various DS should be adequately stressed so that informed decisions can be made. Such training programs might have a far-reaching impact on the nutrition choices of the population at large., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2023 European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Shruti Singh,1 Nirav Nimavat,2 Amarjeet Kumar Singh,3 Shamshad Ahmad,4 Nishi Sinha2 1Department of Pharmacology, AIIMS, Patna, Bihar, India; 2Department of Community Medicine, SBKS MIRC, Sumandeep Vidyapeeth Deemed to be University, Vadodara, Gujarat, India; 3Department of Anaesthesia, AIIMS, Patna, Bihar, India; 4Department of Community and Family Medicine, AIIMS, Patna, Bihar, IndiaCorrespondence: Nirav NimavatDepartment of Community Medicine, SBKS MIRC, Sumandeep Vidyapeeth Deemed to be University, Vadodara, Gujarat, IndiaEmail nkniraj1529@gmail.comBackground: The world is facing the most challenging pandemic in the 21st century. The developed and developing countries are facing the burden equally and no proven treatment options available. Recent studies suggest the plausibility of vitamin D therapy and prophylaxis for COVID-19, in the setting where the deficiency is more prevalent. Though evaluation of vitamin D status is not a routine in India, the present study focuses on the level of Vitamin d among COVID-19 patients.Methods: The study was a hospital-based cross-sectional to find the status of vitamin D among COVID-19 patients in a tertiary care hospital, Patna, Bihar, India. The demographic, comorbidity data were taken, and the level of vitamin D was measured by a chemiluminescence-based immunoassay analyzer. The analysis compared the level of deficiency and insufficiency among different groups of COVID-19 patients. The role of DM and HTN as risk factors for mortality was compared.Results: Among the total study participants (156), 42.31% were obese and 17.31% were severe as per clinical severity. The total prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was 58.97% and insufficiency was 89.1%. The prevalence was found high among male (61.02%), overweight (65.52%), and severe (62.96%) patients. The severity increases with advanced age (p< 0.05) and important risk factors for mortality are DM, HTN, and advanced age.Conclusion: The level of vitamin D can be assessed for the prognosis of COIVD-19 patients and help to modify the treatment protocol. Appropriate therapeutic/preventive intervention of vitamin D can alter the course and severity of COVID-19.Keywords: Vitamin D, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, low level of Vitamin D

Nirav Nimavat,1 Shruti Singh,2 Nilesh Fichadiya,3 Parul Sharma,4 Nilesh Patel,1 Manoj Kumar,1 Grishma Chauhan,1 Niraj Pandit1 1Department of Community Medicine, Smt. B.K. Shah Medical Institute & Research Centre, Sumandeep Vidyapeeth, Vadodara, Gujarat, India; 2Department of Pharmacology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, Bihar, India; 3Department of Community Medicine, P. D. U. Government Medical College, Rajkot, Gujarat, India; 4GMERS Medical College, Patan, Gujarat, IndiaCorrespondence: Nirav NimavatDepartment of Community Medicine, SBKS MIRC, Sumandeep Vidyapeeth Deemed to Be University, Piparia, Vadodara, 391760, Gujarat, IndiaTel +91 8866271087Email nkniraj1529@gmail.comIntroduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, most educational institutions have opted for online education rather than traditional modes of education to protect their employees and students. Online education has been gaining momentum in almost all countries around the world. This coincides with the recently introduced competency-based medical education in India which has embraced online education. This poses a new challenge for the institutions involved, the instructors or teachers, and the students since they must adapt quickly to the new mode of learning. Online education requires teachers to improve their competency in three major areas; pedagogy, technology, and content knowledge. Some of the challenges include; lack of technological skill, poor time management and lack of infrastructure. As technology rapidly advances, health care education systems must also advance in tandem. To implement the new competency-based system and online education, the institutions and the individuals must realize the importance of online education, identify the barriers and quickly work on solutions for success.Methods: This review was conducted based on various research papers on the topic of online medical education, the challenges faced by faculty members, and the opinion of students on this dilemma. Search terms included online medical education, COVID19, competency-based medical education.Conclusion: This review identified various challenges posed by online education on the current medical curriculum, faced by both faculty members and students, especially under the light of the Competency-Based Undergraduate Curriculum for Indian Graduates. Different solutions were proposed to overcome these challenges.Keywords: online medical education, COVID-19, competency-based medical education