What
is a Dietitian?
Food
is so much more than just the fuel to make our body’s engine work
for another day — although of course it does that as well. Locked
up in our diet are all the vital ingredients that make us what we are
— and in the case of children, what they are going to be. Calcium
for strong teeth, vitamin A for good eye health, vitamin C for a
healthy immune system and vitamin D for strong, healthy bones are a
few well-known examples.
That’s
why the choices we make over what to shop for and what to cook, which
end up defining our children’s diet, are so important — choices
which can have a long-term positive or negative affect on their
health and fitness for life. And that’s where a dietitian can help.
What
is the difference between a Dietitian, a Nutritionist and a
Nutritional Therapist?
The different titles ‘Nutritional Therapist’, ‘Nutritionist’
and ‘Dietitian’ can be very confusing. However, when it comes to
helping their clients they each have their own very distinct role to
play in the field of food and diet. In line with the definitions
set out by their associated professional bodies - the BDA (British
Dietetic Association), BANT (British Association for Applied
Nutrition and Nutritional
Therapy), The Nutrition Society, and ION (The Institute of Optimum
Nutrition) - we have detailed below the practitioner types to help
you choose the professional best suited to your circumstances.
Dietitians
use the science of nutrition to devise eating plans for patients, in
order to treat medical conditions. They also work to promote good
health by helping to facilitate a positive change in food choices
amongst individuals, groups and communities. They have all been
trained to university degree level or above, and many dietitians work
in a hospital or clinical environment (usually the NHS). Dietitians
carry the protected title ‘RD’ (registered dietitian) and are
regulated and protected by the Health Professions Council (HPC). They
may also be members of their own association, the British Dietetic
Association. They often specialise in certain fields such as
diabetics, paediatrics or renal dietetics.
Nutritional
Therapists
consider
individual
treatment
for diet and lifestyle in order to alleviate or prevent ailments and
to promote good health through all life stages. They will
work with the patient as an individual, to overcome problems such as
allergies, hormone imbalance and skin disorders. They have some
training to work in clinical practice, are members of organisations
such as BANT and are voluntarily regulated by The Nutritional Therapy
Council.
Nutritionists
are practitioners who can advise on food and healthy eating
but not about restorative diets. Many nutritionists work in research
or the food industry and some are also registered dietitians.
So
how can a Dietitian help?
Dietitians
can assist you with your dietary, nutritional and food related
concerns
and to meet your needs and goals for achieving nutritional health and
well-being of your family. They focus on the individual needs of your
child and/or your family as a whole, and can offer friendly and
practical suggestions into improving and enhancing your diet and
lifestyle. They are committed to encouraging the health and well-being of people by
providing education, motivation and support. Food is one of the great
pleasures of life, and all food can be enjoyed as part of a
well-balanced, healthy lifestyle.
Dietitians
work with people and science. They are all trained to graduate level,
and are experts in diet and nutrition. Dietitians are skilled in
taking scientific information relating to food and health and
translating it into terms that everyone can understand. The title
'dietitian' is protected and in order to work in the NHS, dietitians
must be on the Health Professions Council (HPC) register. Dietitians
work in a variety of settings and with a number of different people; however, only dietitians working in private practice are listed on
this web site.
All
registered dietitians have an HPC registration number which is
clearly displayed in your search results and can easily be cross
referenced online at the Health Professions Council’s web site.
Always check their registration and ask if they are a member of the
British Dietetic Association, which provides their professional
indemnity insurance.
Please
note that it is important, when you are looking to employ the
services of a practitioner, to research their professional training
and education. This will ensure that you are receiving a safe and
ethical service and that the intervention or counselling is
effective.
All
practitioners on the WeightAwareUK Register have trained to
proficient levels within their respective areas, are members of their
own professional bodies and work to a specific and very strict code
of conduct.