Need a nutritionist?
A nutritionist will discuss any nutritional worries or problems that affect your everyday eating habits. He or she will assess your current eating pattern and check for any dietary deficiency or imbalance and will then be able to advise you on how to improve your diet. If you have a special condition - for example, if you are pregnant or have heart disease, or you want to lose or gain weight - a nutritionist can recommend modifications to your diet.
What happens on the first visit to a nutritionist?
A nutritionist will ask you about your objectives (whether they are to treat a particular complaint such as heart disease or to lose weight, for example), your health and your current diet. She will discuss your lifestyle, your eating pattern, any allergies you may have, and any restrictions that you have placed on your diet - if you are a committed vegetarian, for instance.
A nutritionist may also ask you about any digestive problems and about your likes and dislikes concerning food. You will probably be asked to keep a food diary for a few days after your first visit. This will be discussed on your next visit. If your aim is to lose or gain weight, the nutritionist may record your weight, percentage of body fat and measurements (chest, waist and hips).
What is a food diary?
A food diary is one of the best ways to find out what you are really taking in. When keeping a food diary, you will write down the exact amounts of everything you eat and drink for about three to seven days (including every cup of tea and biscuit). Using the completed diary, the nutritionist will be able to analyse your diet, compare your intake with the recommended values, check for any deficiencies - in folic acid, iron or calcium, for example - and then advise you on specific changes that you should make .
Will the nutritionist perform any tests?
If your diet lacks a particular nutrient and the nutritionist suspects that you are suffering deficiency symptoms, she should consult your doctor. The nutritionist will describe the deficiency and suggest that you have a test - for example, a blood test for anaemia, which might be caused by lack of iron in your diet.
Will the nutritionist recommend recipe ideas?
Yes. Your food diary will reveal whether your diet is unbalanced or if you have erratic eating habits. If the diary indicates that you are often too busy to prepare proper meals - you may skip breakfast and eat too many snack meals - the nutritionist will suggest quick, nourishing recipes using foods you enjoy that you can prepare at home.
If you are a vegetarian, the nutritionist will suggest various ways of mixing beans and grains and other foods to get the right quality of proteins. The nutritionist will check your food diary for sources of iron and how often you eat them.
If there is a deficiency, the nutritionist will give you recipes that use iron-rich foods, such as cereals, dark green leafy vegetables and egg yolks. The nutritionist will also tell you how to mix iron-rich foods with foods rich in vitamin C to increase iron absorption - for example, by eating your breakfast cereal with fresh strawberries.
How soon will my new eating habits have an effect on the way i look and feel?
This will depend on what sort of changes you need to make and how soon you can put them into practice. Most people start to feel and see an improvement in two or three weeks. If you are aiming to lose weight, you should lose between one to two pounds per week - any more may be dangerous - and, therefore, you should see a noticeable difference after two or three weeks.
