What is Nutritional Therapy?

Nutritional therapy is a complementary therapy, which means it can work alongside orthodox medicine. It is a way of using food and supplements to encourage the body’s natural healing.

What is Nutritional Therapy? Nutritional therapy is the application of nutrition and health science to enable individuals to maximize their health potential. Nutritional therapy can help alleviate a wide range of conditions and assist in the recovery from many ill-health situations. Nutritional therapists recognise that each person is an individual who has unique dietary and nutritional requirements.

How does a Nutritional Therapist work?
Nutritional therapists assess nutritional status and functional capacity. They recognize that each person’s needs are unique, depending on a number of factors, from inherited strengths and weaknesses to the influence of diet, lifestyle and environment. Nutritional therapists work with clients with chronic health problems and provide advice on disease prevention and control. The nutritional therapist will take a comprehensive client history and may use biochemical and other types of clinical assessment to formulate a treatment plan. In addition to dietary and nutritional advice, recommendations may include guidance on natural detoxification, methods to support digestion and absorption, procedures to promote colon health, and also the avoidance of ingestion or inhalation of allergens or toxins. Taking a whole systems approach, these protocols can impact on hormonal, neurological and immune function. Many parents now seek the help of nutritional therapists for their children with weight and behavioural problems.

Where do Nutritional Therapists work?
Nutritional therapists frequently work in private practice, often seeing clients who have come to them via positive reports from other clients or who have referred themselves. In some cases nutritional therapists see clients who have been referred by a consultant, medical or dental practitioner or other health professional.

The activities of a Nutritional Therapist can include:

• Use of diagnostic tools such as Iridology and Kinesiology, for which they are strongly encouraged to register with the Professional Body covering any separate discipline.
• Liaison with and appropriate referral to other health professionals.
• Education of the public, media and other health professionals about the importance of nutrition for human health through presentations, the provision of literature and responding to media opportunities such as radio and TV.
• Undertaking postgraduate research, Masters and PhDs to further develop the field of nutritional therapy.
• Carrying out Clinical Audits and sharing the findings through appropriate reports and publications.
• Contribution to academic journals through writing articles, reports and case studies.
• Teaching nutritional therapy in primary, secondary and tertiary educational establishments.
• Training health food traders and other groups in industry.
• Updating professional knowledge through Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
• Provision of technical support in industrial settings.

Nutritional Therapy Practitioners
Only practitioners who meet the National Occupational Standards for Nutritional Therapy should refer to themselves as 'Nutritional Therapists'. The NTC is the regulatory body.

Source: Nutritional Therapy Council, www.nutritionaltherapycouncil.org.uk & other various sources