Nutrition Educator vs Registered Dietician - Which is Right for You?
What’s the difference between a registered dietician and a nutrition educator?
Put simply, a registered dietitian typically makes recommendations of what to eat, while a nutrition educator teaches people how to eat for their optimal health and personal goals.
Registered dietitians provide clinical expertise in nutrition, which they use to design meal plans for clients.
Nutrition educators teach people about food and nutrition so that they can make their own choices about what they want to eat in a healthier way.
As a nutrition educator, I work with individuals and groups to tailor lessons and nutrition counseling to personal goals, health issues, and lifestyles. I don’t believe in a “one size fits all approach.” I focus on food enjoyment, overcoming food noise, and how to use food to build a happier, healthier life, now and forever.
I don’t believe in “going on a diet” — this won’t bring you happiness or long-term success!
Some of the nutrition topics I teach include how to:
reduce and prevent health problems with easy substitutions and changes
assess whether a food will provide energy or promote fatigue
decode food and nutrition labels
understand the tricks, crafty packaging, and deceptive marketing food manufacturers use to sell seemingly healthy foods that aren’t healthy
make sense of the different messages in the media about sometimes confusing issues like sugar, the glycemic index, high fructose corn syrup, dietary fiber, trans fats, organic foods, and many others
improve fitness levels through simple nutrition changes
identify and eat for food sensitivities and food allergies without feeling deprived
eat during pregnancy in a way that reduces pregnancy symptoms, improves the health of mom and baby, and leads to easier post-partum weight loss
handle picky eaters and raise children that are more likely to enjoy a wide variety of foods
many other topics refined over two decades of research and teaching
