See “Is there a difference between a nutritionist and a dietitian?” for why we believe licensed dietitians provide the best level of nutritional care.

However, if you are trying to figure out who and what to look for when seeking nutrition advice, you’re not alone! We live in a world that has so many mixed messages when it comes to health and wellness, that it can be completely overwhelming!

With that said, we believe it reasonable and prudent to think about the following when you are choosing a nutrition practitioner:

1. Does the practitioner have appropriate training and education for this profession? There are a million nutrition “certifications” but did you know that 95% of them involve less than 1 year of training and most are completed without ever stepping foot into a classroom or working beside another practitioner? Would you trust a physical therapist with a 6 month certification course online, or a doctor who got an online degree? Ask your nutrition practitioner what training they received, where and by whom they were certified and how long they have been practicing. A legitimate practitioner will be happy to tell you. A good rule of thumb: legitimate nutrition practitioners have NO LESS than 4 years of intensive training with additional internship and practicum experience. Many have Masters level degrees and over a year of clinical internship, much the way a licensed counselor would. You are putting your trust in someone to help you improve your health, and you deserve someone with the training to do that.
2. Is the practitioner licensed or certified by a legitimate board agency? For example, dietitians in SC are licensed by the state through LLR, as well as certified nationally after passing board exams, by the Commission on Dietetic Registration. Clinical Nutrition Specialists are certified nationally by the American Nutrition Association. Both require national board exams for certification and periodic recertification to maintain credentials. If the practitioner has no licensing, and no certification from any national board, it is questionable whether they can be trusted to provide legitimate information
3. Does the practitioner use evidence-based practices? This means being familiar with science and research, being able to back up why they do the things they do, and providing clear rationale for their philosophy of nutrition. There is still plenty of room for disagreement in the world of science, but if a practitioner talks about doing nutritional practices that seem completely off the wall, chances are, they are not practicing evidence-based nutrition. Refer back to #1 and you may find out why they are “off the wall”.
4. Does the practitioner have good reviews, or did they come with a good word-of-mouth referral from your family or friends? This is extremely important because no endorsement rings as true as those we love having a good experience. Our practice lives by this, and tries to go above and beyond to provide the very best care to everyone we serve. We take our clients’ trust seriously, and to have those individuals recommend others is the greatest honor for us.
5. Does the practitioner have clinical experience in addressing the nutrition and wellness goals you want to pursue? There’s no teacher like clinical experience in helping a good practitioner become great. Finding a practitioner that specializes in what you are looking for is really important to get the best care.

We hope when picking a good practitioner you can weigh these factors, and whether you give us a call or not – we wish you the very best care for you and your loved ones!