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What Is A Clinical Nutritionist? The Definitive Guide

A ‘Clinical Nutritionist’ is a qualified healthcare professional who can provide personalised advice on diet, lifestyle, and nutritional supplementation, including the use of specific medicinal nutrient forms and doses to support personal health goals and the amelioration of various health conditions, within a clinical practice setting.

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What Are The Techniques Used By A Clinical Nutritionist?

Nutritionists use a number of different techniques to provide health advice, including:

Goal Setting

Many people visit nutritionists with particular goals they want to achieve. They may have gained weight and want to get into better shape. They may be aware of certain family or genetic health risks and want to take steps to reduce those risks. They may have existing chronic health conditions and symptoms and would like to reduce those symptoms and feel better. They may simply be looking to look and feel their best. A qualified Clinical Nutritionist will be able to offer sound advice to help individuals achieve these goals.

Diet & Lifestyle Analysis

In order to provide valuable advice, a Clinical Nutritionist must understand a patient’s existing diet – which foods they typically eat, and how often they eat them.

As well as exploring the local environment and any lifestyle habits that may provide a better understanding of what is needed, and which adjustments may be most feasible.

Physical Analysis

A Clinical Nutritionist may also observe physical signs and symptoms for further indications into the body’s needs.

Laboratory Analysis

A Clinical Nutritionist may recommend certain laboratory tests to gain detailed insights into a patient’s personal biochemistry (such as blood tests, urine tests, saliva tests, hair tests, stool tests, etc.). The level of detail provided by such tests may assist with developing highly personalised and targeted treatment strategies (that would not otherwise be possible from external examinations alone).

Meal Plans And Food Diaries

After understanding the patient’s current diet and needs, certain customised diet and lifestyle plans may be used to provide tangible structure for individuals to follow, that target certain goals established during any assessment stages. This plan can then be used to track changes over time and monitor for further progress and evolution of treatment.

Supplement Prescriptions

After comprehensive assessment of individual personal needs, a Clinical Nutritionist may recommend supplementation with various specialised forms and doses of nutraceutical compounds that may assist with modulating biochemical processes within the body to help achieve any targeted health goals. Sometimes this may extend to the development of custom compounded medicines (tailored nutrient formulations) dispensed for addressing any especially unique needs, or yielding particularly powerful effects.

What Are Some Health Benefits of Good Nutrition?

Eating good food is one of the best things you can do for your health. It has an immense number of benefits, including:3,4

  • Weight loss
  • Improved mood
  • More energy
  • Reduced risk of common diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis
  • Better immune system
  • Lower cholesterol
  • Improved memory and brain function
  • Better gut health
  • Improved digestive function and metabolic health
  • Reduced inflammation
  • Reduced risk of stroke
  • Stronger bones and teeth
  • Protection against skin cancer
  • A plant-based diet is much cheaper than a meat-based diet

A nutritionist can provide professional, quality advice on how you can use food to vastly improve your health.

References

  1. Marcus White, 2016, James Lind: The man who helped to cure scurvy with lemons, BBC
  2. The History of Nutrition, Natural Healers
  3. Franziska Spritzler, 2019, 21 Reasons to Eat Real Food, Healthline
  4. What are the benefits of eating healthy?, Medical News Today