A health promoting diet is the foundation of wellness. Clinical nutrition consists of using diet and nutritional supplements (vitamin, minerals, etc.) as a therapeutic modality.
Recommendations will be made on an individual basis taking into consideration your current lifestyle and nutrition, your health concerns, any allergies and sensitivities, and your wellness goals. A specific diet may be recommended. Resources such as books, nutritional literature and recipes may be recommended or supplied to help support and guide you on your nutritional plan.
Your treatment plan will likely include nutritional supplements. Nutritional supplements may be added if you require a pharmaceutical dose of nutrient versus a typical food does. Nutritional supplements are able to make up for nutrients which are not readily available in your diet. If your body has a difficulty with digestion or absorption, supplements are in a concentrated enough form to help your body absorb necessary nutrients. Nutritional supplements are often taken as a: chewable, capsule, tablet, or powder.
I may recommend a 7-10 day diet diary as part of your treatment plan. There are many reasons for completing a diet diary, such as: helping determine your typical diet if no routine is established or if your diet varies dramatically day to day; it may also help determine any foods that may be aggravating your health condition; and it may give us insight into ways to adapt your diet to provide a better balance of nutrients.
Food, vital to life, is the foundation of health and well being. Food should be safe, but safety can be an issue due to contamination from pesticides, herbicides, chemicals, heavy metals, allergens, molds, bacteria, and GMOs. Please purchase only non-GMO foods. There have been studies which indicate that GMO’s may contribute to tumor growth and destruction of the small intestinal villi.
Wash fruits and vegetables before consuming or cooking. Consider purchasing organically grown foods or pesticide-free foods when able or at minimum buy organic foods if the food is listed on the environmental working group’s “dirty dozen” list. Foods on the 2013 dirty dozen list include apples, celery, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, grapes, hot peppers, imported nectarines, peaches, potatoes, spinach, strawberries, sweet bell peppers, kale/collard greens, and summer squash. Consuming organically grown foods or pesticide-free foods should reduce your exposure to herbicides, fungicides, pesticides, and heavy metals associated with them.
Clinical Nutrition includes vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids which may be recommended in supplement form. The issue of supplement quality is important, which is why I can be very specific when recommending a nutraceutical company’s product. There are many reputable supplement companies which carefully source, process, and test their batches to ensure potency of the product and verify that there is no heavy metal or microbial contamination