It is not so much an issue of knowledge but of habits, convenience, and support systems. That’s why even if you ‘know better’, a nutritionist or accountability coach can help you.
When not to see a nutrition professional
We are not the people to see if you are experiencing an acute issue—say a stroke or trauma—or during a mental health emergency.
Why not to see a nutrition professional
See a primary care practitioner to get a disease diagnosed or treated—we want to see you long before that! If you insist on a lab test to confirm anemia instead of a functional evaluation (to see if your body or diet may lack iron), see a doctor.
When it would be most useful:
If you want to age well and avoid chronic disease, see us! If you just don’t feel as good as you should, come to see us. If you are making a life change, like moving out on your own, or going through a period of growth such as adolescence or pregnancy, that is a great time to see us. If you need to be at your best, during a demanding time—an athletic competition, medical school, launching your own business, adapting to life as a working parent—that is a great time, too. If your blood sugar is not optimal or you have an untreatable issue like IBS, exhaustion, or moodiness, we may be able to help! We see imbalances and dietary deficiencies every day. Often, you can be out of balance long before you develop a disease, and that’s where we prefer to meet you.
10 Reasons Why You Should See a Nutrition Professional
To know yourself better.
It is good to understand your unique metabolism. Even if you don’t have a health issue, observe your eating patterns, be aware of what you eat, and learn and observe how it affects you. If it’s your kids you’re worried about, walk them through the same observation process.
To optimize yourself.
To the body, food is information, not just energy or calories. Food breaks down into components that signal our cells and inform them. In this way, food directs cell behavior and in turn affects how our bodies function. To achieve optimal functioning, we want the very best food information to reach our cells.
To get the whole story.
Even if you’re confident in your nutrition knowledge and think you know enough about nutrition, you may be surprised what you can learn from a professional. Health information is reported in a way that makes it easy to jump to wrong conclusions. Get the whole story. One insight may prevent an illness and may be all that is standing between you and outstanding lifelong vitality.
For support.
Knowing everything isn’t everything. It’s easy to think “If only I knew more or had more information, I’d be healthier.” But this is what Holistic Functional Nutritionist Andrea Nakayama calls “the information trap.” Studies show that people who eat ultra-processed foods know that is not a healthy choice. It is not an issue of knowledge but of habits, convenience, and support systems. That’s why even if you know better, a nutritionist or accountability coach can help you.
To get more out of life.
Even if there is nothing clinically wrong with you, you may feel a little flat, a little fuzzy, or a little frazzled. These may be symptoms of a subclinical imbalance. Why settle when life can sparkle?
To make the most of your golden years.
Aging is normal, and some wear and tear are expected, but don’t ignore symptoms that might be telling you something important. Deep wrinkles, cognitive decline, fading eyesight, and poor digestion do not have to be your new normal. They may indicate correctable deficiencies in silicon, DHA, lutein, enzymes or something else.
So we can help you learn to “adult” like a boss.
It’s not fair that so much of our wellbeing is dependent on skills we may never have been properly taught! Shopping smart, equipping your kitchen, food preparation, and menu planning are life-changing skills we can help you master. Conversely, we can help you unlearn bad habits too!
Because it’s not all in your head.
All kinds of seemingly unrelated symptoms may be rooted in nutrition. It’s possible your low mood or apprehensiveness is a symptom of chronic inflammation or just plain old nutrient deficiencies! What if, by putting junk food on pause and getting enough essential fatty acids, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin D, and nourishing your microbiome with probiotics and fermented foods, you could feel 100%!?
So you can relax.
Let us help you worry less. Enjoy foods you thought were off limits. Let’s incorporate foods you love back into your life. Enjoy tasty, nutritious eating without obsessing. A wide variety of foods can be eaten when you have a healed gut and balanced immune system, and fat can enhance the taste and texture of food, without making you “fat.”
Because you’re thinking of “going ______.”
Diets are not one size fits all. Our food should fit our ages and stages, our climate and culture, our values and inherent physiology. Just because many vegans “glow” and a friend lost weight on keto doesn’t mean either will be a fit for you. If you really want a good shot at doing a diet healthfully, get help, customize it to you, and avoid the pitfalls.
