I started as a dietitian in a hospital teaching the tools I was taught in school. I remember the first time I veered from those teachings and was told I couldn’t teach the patients that. It was simply saying to a cardiac patient that butter is better for her/him than margarine. When I was being told I had to tell patients that a chemical laden, ultra processed food stuff is better than a real, single ingredient food, I knew traditional nutrition wasn’t the route for me. That’s when I found a functional nutritionist training and started right away.
What Is the Difference between a Traditional Nutritionist and a Functional Nutritionist?
The nationally recognized professional term of someone that helps another with their diet is a dietitian. The licensure of the dietitian is different in each state. Some states have the term “nutritionist” covered; meaning, you have to be a dietitian to be able to call yourself a nutritionist.
That is the case in my state so I use the terms dietitian and nutritionist interchangeably. Not all states are like that though. In many states, anyone can take an online course and get a certification to become a “nutritionist”. So make sure you know what you’re getting when you hire a nutritionist.
Assuming both are dietitians, the difference between a traditional nutritionist and a functional nutritionist is the extra training the functional nutritionist has to take to learn the practice of functional nutrition.
How Does a Traditional Nutritionist Practice Vs a Functional Nutritionist?
When I worked as a traditional nutritionist, the education material I relied on came from my schooling and I was taught to use the Food Guide Pyramid. You remember that right? Following the principles of the Food Guide Pyramid, I would have been allowed to eat up to eleven servings of bread, sugary cereal and/or processed grains per day!
I wasn’t helping people heal, or really do much of anything, with that advice.
When I learned the principles of functional nutrition, I quickly dropped the Food Guide Pyramid and haven’t looked back.
Over the years, I have tailored my programs to focus on a specific client: women that suffer from life-altering symptoms. Through my training as a functional nutritionist, I help these women with the 5Rs of functional nutrition.
How Does a Functional Nutritionist Approach Autoimmune Disease, Chronic Pain and Chronic Fatigue?
Remove
First, as a functional nutritionist, I help women remove the things that are causing the autoimmune disease, chronic pain or chronic fatigue. If the root cause is not removed, everything else will just be covering up the problem. True healing will not take place and the problem can continue to cause worsening problems or even cause more problems somewhere else.
Replace
To replace as a functional nutritionist, means to help support the processes the body should be running smoothly but may not be. For example digestion, it may be helpful to take an enzyme or support the stomach with supplements.
Reinoculate
To reinoculate means to repopulate and support the gut microbiome; the trillions of microorganisms in your digestive tract. These are the true healers of our bodies that we don’t give enough credit to. Supporting them through proper food and supplementation is key to the healing process.
Repair
The functional nutritionist knows until you repair the damage, true healing hasn’t taken place. Repair isn’t going to happen unless the proper nutrients are readily available.
Rebalance
Rebalance is probably my favorite part of being a functional nutritionist. Rebalance means just paying attention and fixing your diet isn’t enough if your other lifestyle choices are the problem. You have to be balanced mentally, emotionally, socially and spiritually as well.
Connect with me, the functional nutritionist!!
I’d love to hear, have you ever heard of the 5Rs? Respond to this email with your answer or connect with me here. And as always, if you found this article helpful, please pass it on to someone that may need help with healing from an autoimmune disease, chronic pain or chronic fatigue.
