Who can benefit from Nutritional therapy and Lifestyle Medicine?
Nutritional Therapy may be of benefit to anyone with:
Specific health issues
A diagnosed medical condition
Weight problems
A desire to boost their energy or performance (mental or physical)
A desire to prevent future health problems.
Whatever people come for, they often report benefits beyond those that were their immediate concerns. For example:
Increased energy
Better mood
Better concentration and focus
More restful sleep
Improved memory
Healthy, glowing skin
Weight control
This is because nutritional therapy and lifestyle medicine uses a systems biology approach aimed at getting to the underlying biochemical imbalances contributing to ill health and working towards correcting these root causes.
How long will it take for me to feel better?
Each client responds differently to the changes introduced by nutritional therapy. Most people will feel some benefits quite quickly, although it may take considerably longer to reach your full potential. We want your new way of eating and living to become a sustainable habit and habit change can take time so continued support from regular consultations will help you to keep on track.
What is involved in a consultation?
Before our first meeting – Once you have booked our first meeting, you will be sent/asked to download a questionnaire and a food diary – covering all aspects of your medical history, dietary habits and lifestyle factors. You are asked to return this 3 days before you arrive for your consultation.
During our first meeting – We will discuss your medical history, current diet and lifestyle with you and explore how nutrition and lifestyle changes could help improve your health. A plan of action will be discussed with you and information on the first steps of this plan given for you to take away. Specific, achievable goals will be discussed with you – you are involved in every step, so you are able to work at your own speed. The plan will be developed further at subsequent meetings
Follow ups – At our first meeting we will have discussed your chosen program and whether it meets your needs in terms of how often we will be in contact. The time between follow ups and how many times we will meet varies for each individual and depends on how you prefer to work.
Will I have to have tests?
Tests are a useful tool but will only be suggested if appropriate to your needs. Some tests your doctor may be willing to do, others may require private testing.
You may be recommended private tests to help identify the best strategy for your situation, but the reasons for doing the test, the cost and expected results will always be discussed with you and you only proceed with the test if you are happy. If tests are needed, the results will be analysed and discussed with you together with appropriate changes or refinements to your plan. Note that the cost of private testing is not included in the program fees.
Will I have to take supplements?
Supplements are often recommended at the start of your therapy, but this they are not always needed. Food is always the most important aspect of nutritional therapy. However, certain nutrients can help support various aspects of the body's functioning and using supplements may help speed up your progress. Over time you will be able to reduce your supplement intake. Note that the cost of supplements is not included in the program fees.
How Does Nutritional Therapy and Lifestyle Medicine Work?
Nutritional therapy is the application of nutrition science in the promotion of health, peak performance and individual care. Nutritional therapy practitioners use a wide range of tools to assess and identify potential nutritional imbalances and understand how these may contribute to an individual’s symptoms and health concerns. This approach allows them to work with individuals to address nutritional balance and help support the body towards maintaining health.
Nutritional therapy is recognised as a complementary medicine and is relevant for individuals with chronic conditions, as well as those looking for support to enhance their health and wellbeing.
Practitioners consider each individual to be unique and recommend personalised nutrition and lifestyle programmes rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach. Practitioners never recommend nutritional therapy as a replacement for medical advice and always refer any client with ‘red flag’ signs or symptoms to their medical professional. They will also frequently work alongside a medical professional and will communicate with other healthcare professionals involved in the client’s care to explain any nutritional therapy programme that has been provided.
what is the difference between a nutritional therapist and a dietician?
A Nutritional Therapist uses the science of nutrition to alleviate health symptoms and to promote optimum health. Nutritional Therapists work independently in private practice. Their professional body is the British Association for Applied Nutrition and Nutritional Therapy (BANT). Nutritional Therapists work with many common health issues and often work with patients, many of whom have been referred by medical practitioners, presenting with chronic health problems that conventional medicine finds difficult to treat. These include allergies, digestive and bowel disorders, hormonal imbalances, fatigue, depression or stress, auto-immune conditions, migraine and skin disorders.
A dietician uses the science of nutrition to devise eating plans for patients with various medical conditions. Dieticians work principally in the National Health Service and are regulated by the Health Professions Council. Their professional body is the British Dietetic Association. They may also specialise in the field of artificial nutrition support, work in the medical nutrition industry or in private practice.
Why choose a registered nutritional therapist?
Choosing a Registered Nutritional Therapist ensures your therapist will have undertaken all the necessary training to understand the theory and practice of nutritional therapy. BANT-member Registered Nutritional Therapists are regulated by the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). By choosing Registered Nutritional Therapists registered with the CNHC you can be confident that they are properly trained, qualified and insured, and that they abide by the CNHC’s Code of Conduct.
How many consultations will I need?
The number of consultations required depends on each client's individual health issues. The aim is to achieve long-term results as quickly as possible. In most cases at least 4 consultations will be needed.
Do you offer telephone or Skype consultations?
Yes, I can offer remote consultations by telephone or via Skype. Ideally our first meeting and at least some of the follow ups would be face to face, but shorter catch-ups work very well with Skype or by telephone.
What if I am taking prescription medicines?
Qualified Nutritional Therapists are trained to identify drug-nutrient interactions. In your preliminary questionnaire you are asked to include all their medications so that the nutritional therapy recommendations will complement any prescription medication.
Is my personal data kept confidential?
Your personal information is kept strictly confidential. Where relevant, I may keep your GP informed about your program. However, I will only do this with your permission. Please read the Privacy Statement for more details about how your personal data is handled.