Nutritionists and the new law on the profession: who will lose their job?

Although the principles of the law were developed earlier, within the framework of the work of the Parliamentary Group for the Statutory Regulation of the Dietitian Profession and the Creation of the Professional Self-Government of Nutritionists, it is On July 16, 2026, the bill was submitted to the Sejm. It now faces a series of legislative stages before it can be adopted as a law in force.

What should the law on the profession of dietitian change in the first place?

The most important points are several. Dietitians are expected to gain status through the law independent medical profession, which is intended to affect the unification of the rules for the practice of this profession. The definition of a nutritionist as a medical profession also implies the introduction of specific requirements for education and the right to practice the profession.

The project involves the creation of professional self-government of nutritionists, which is to be responsible, inter alia, for issues related to the right to practice the profession. The regulations also cover professional training of nutritionists, postgraduate education and rules of professional responsibility.

As we can read in the passage of the bill:

Art. 4. 1. A dietitian performs the profession with due diligence, in accordance with the principles of professional ethics, respect for the rights of the patient, care for his safety and using the indications of current medical knowledge.

The designation of the profession of nutritionist as a medical profession has its own specific justification. According to the authors of the bill, nutritionists play an increasing role in the prevention and treatment of diseases, which automatically entails responsibility for the patient and close cooperation with the medical community.

It is also important to take into account Transitional provisions, which will allow the retention of rights to persons who meet certain professional requirements, but who have, for example, an education obtained on previous principles. These include people who have graduated from post-secondary schools or certain fields of study that previously could have been considered sufficient to pursue a profession.

Such solutions are intended to allow current nutritionists to maintain the protection of their professional title and at the same time to organize the rules of practice of the profession. In practice, this can mean both a greater professionalization of the work of nutritionists and greater protection of the patients who use their services.

It is also worth mentioning that if the law is passed, people unlawfully using the title of nutritionist They will be able to be punished. The bill provides for the protection of the professional title and the penalization of its illegal use.

Dietitians after the law: what will be their responsibilities?

The competences specified in the draft law, which will belong to nutritionists, can include, among others, the following:

• assessment of nutritional status patient,
• conducting Dietary Counseling,
• devising Individual nutrition plans,
• participation in nutritional treatment,
• nutrition education,
• activities in the field public health,
• conducting Dietary documentation.

It is worth mentioning that part of the professional activities is to be reserved exclusively for people who the right to practice the profession.

According to the project, it will also be the responsibility of future nutritionists to continuously improve their qualifications within the continuous professional development. On the other hand, this will entail specific rights — including the right to use paid training leave of up to six days a year.

When can we expect the bill to be decided by the Sejm?

Today, the project is only at the initial stage. It has not yet been adopted by the Sejm. After submission on 16 July, it was referred for opinion and public consultation. After that, the bill will have to go through the next stages of the legislative process before the Sejm can decide on its further procedure.

Will the new regulations really change the situation of nutritionists? And above all — do they mean that some people may lose the ability to use this title? This will depend primarily on the final form of the law and the transitional provisions.

Sources:

1. https://dietetycy.org.pl/konsultacje-spoleczne-ustawa/
2. https://www.sejm.gov.pl/sejm10.nsf/agent.xsp?symbol=POSIEDZENIAZESP&Zesp=1082
3. https://ptd.org.pl/zawod-dietetyka/ustawa-o-zawodzie-dietetyka/
4. https://www.gazetaprawna.pl/prawnik/legislacja/artykuly/11277968,ustawa-o-zawodzie-dietetyka-zmiany-przepisy.html