Nutrition is often the missing piece in protocols developed by health care providers.
As you will see from my bio page, I moved into the world of functional nutrition because of my experience with my own health issues. Nutrition is often the missing piece in protocols developed by health care providers, and nutrition can be a very good intervention to improve your health. It is a time-consuming process to help someone work through dietary changes, and it’s good to work with someone who is trained specifically in this area of health which, as a nutritionist, I am.
It’s important to know that in Ontario we have a whole bunch of different health care providers who are governed by legislation. This list includes doctors and nurses, dieticians, naturopaths, Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners, psychotherapists, and homeopaths. Nutritionists are not covered by this legislation and because of that we practice around the edges of health care practitioners who are regulated and do engage in some of the same kind of work. There are overlaps between different practitioners, but in fact, it’s impossible to draw firm lines around these areas of practice because we human beings are complex and hence, there is always overlap.
Nutrition can be a very good intervention to improve your health
It is important however, for me to make very clear that the rules state I cannot provide a diagnosis. I do not therefore diagnose health conditions and I am not trained in diagnosing health conditions. What I do is invite you to join me on a journey of exploration of your health through the lens of nutrition. This means that there will be things I might advise you to do, such as take a particular type of test that will give us an understanding of some of your nutritional issues. None of the tests I suggest you take are tests only offered by doctors, (in fact allopathic physicians don't run the same tests I may suggest you take). Some of these tests are specifically designed to be used by people like myself, who have been trained in functional health and nutrition.
The tests that doctors or naturopaths order might be similar to what I recommend you take but my purpose is always nutrition, not diagnosis of a health condition. You and I will work together to help you feel better using nutrition as our medicine.
In the event that one of the tests I suggest you take does raise a question about your health, I will recommend you go and see your primary health care provider to help you receive proper diagnosis and treatment. I always encourage the people I work with to have a strong working relationship with a regulated health professional. I am here as a supplement to the official health care worker’s role. I love what I do and I know that good nutrition advice can make a huge difference to how a person experiences their life.
