Abstract
What you eat affects your health and wellness. Eating a balanced diet can help you stay in good health. Perhaps your doctor has recently suggested you should lose weight or eat a certain way to manage a health condition.
As you plan healthful meals for you and your family, questions like these sometimes arise:
My doctor told me to lose 10% of my body weight. Now what do I do?
How do I eat more fiber?
I have diabetes. What do I do at the grocery store?
What is the difference between soy milk and cow milk?
I’m pregnant and also planning to breastfeed. What should I eat to protect the baby’s health?
Why is olive oil in the news so much?
My child has food allergies. What should he eat, and what do I tell the school?
My doctor has told me to eat the DASH diet to help control my blood pressure. What is that? Where can I find recipes?
Where Can You Find Answers to Questions Like These?
Nutrition counseling with a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) is an excellent resource. An RDN will work with you to answer your questions, assess your nutrition needs, and help you develop a plan to meet your nutrition goals.
Why Work With a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist?
In some states anyone can call themselves a “nutritionist” without any training or experience. RDNs are highly trained food and nutrition experts. RDNs have met strong academic and professional standards. These include a bachelor’s degree or advanced degrees in the field. RDNs also complete supervised training and pass a national exam.
Throughout their careers, RDNs get continuing professional education to maintain their registration.
RDNs may also be members of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, www.eatright.org.
Nutrition Counseling Just for You
A major benefit of nutritional counseling is that it is “individualized” to your needs. Unlike Internet information or handouts of “to-do” tips, nutrition counseling is often a series of visits with the RDN. A nutrition professional works with you to review your current food and nutrition habits. Together you plan how to meet your health goals. Such goals can range from eating better or losing weight to training for athletic competition. Often, counseling is to help you manage a specific health challenge.
A nutrition plan just for you is one result from your visits to the RDN. Nutrition counseling also offers support and follow-up visits on how to adjust the plan to best fit your lifestyle.
What Is Medical Nutrition Therapy?
Nutrition plays an important role in the treatment of many diseases. These include (but are not limited to) diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, kidney disease, obesity, and cancers. Your doctor will likely refer you to an RDN if he or she is treating you for these conditions. Together, you and the RDN will discuss your health condition, what you currently eat, and therapy goals to create a therapeutic nutrition plan that will work for you.
Does Insurance Pay for Nutritional Counseling?
In many cases, insurance may pay for a certain amount of nutrition counseling when it is prescribed by a physician. For example, Medicare Part B provides for some nutrition counseling for older adults. Many private insurance plans also provide for a set number of nutrition counseling visits. Check your individual policy to see what coverage you may have for the services of an RDN.
How Do I Find an RDN?
Your doctor may refer you to a specific RDN to work with your health care team. You may also locate an RDN in your area at the online referral service from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Find a Registered Dietitian (www.eatright.org). Click on the “Find a Registered Dietitian” button on the home page.
Resources
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, www.eatright.org
Footnotes
Science of Choices Fact Sheets are sponsored by the ConAgra Foods Science Institute. This handout is from your health care provider and provides a general overview that may not apply to everyone. Be sure to discuss how to use this information with your health care provider.