Ok - I get this a lot, "What does 'holistic' mean?"
"Are you going to break out the crystals and chant me into good health".
It's not meant sarcastically (ok sometimes it is, in good fun) but it's a genuine question and concern for some people. How I practice is that I tend to be more of an integrated medical model. I want to see recent medical tests, or I'll send you back to your doctor for medical tests if I suspect something. Use our medical system as much as possible for its diagnostic tools, see what's going on and approach the situation from all perspectives: medical, nutrition and homeopathic. New to my practice, mental health therapy and how it impacts physical symptoms. I focus on medical facts, pathology, and deficiencies that are influencing your well being - mentally and physically. Spirituality maybe added to a treatment plan but that is always up to the patient and what works for them.
But seriously, what is Holistic Nutrition?
Holistic simply means “treating the body as a whole”.
Holistic nutrition addresses digestion, adequacy, balance and moderation, depletions for each individual. In holistic nutrition it is believed that we need a certain balance of protein, vitamins, and other nutrients to help our bodies reach maximum energy levels and overall physical and emotional health. Holistic nutritionists devise menus that match each individual’s health and nutritional needs. We are food first. Supplements are a back up but not contingent on health.
What is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist?
A Registered Holistic Nutritionist (RHN), is a professional trained in Natural Nutrition and complementary therapies, whose principal function is to educate individuals and groups about the benefits and health impact of optimal nutrition.
A holistic nutritionist focuses on the whole person, acknowledging that everyone is unique and, hence, has unique needs. The goal is to unify the physical, nutritional, environmental, emotional and spiritual components of a client’s life to promote healing and wellbeing.
A holistic nutritionist believes that there is no one diet or lifestyle that is right for everyone all of the time; there are no miracle foods or herbs that will cure all illnesses.
Because everyone is different, every effort is made to understand each person’s individual needs, likes and dislikes in order to formulate the best diet, supplement, and lifestyle approach for that person. A holistic nutritionist will help educate you about the best food and lifestyle choices for you. They will help you understand the truth about real food and wellness, and help you make the right choices to find your optimum self.
A holistic nutritionist will also help make sense of all the health information bombarding you on a daily basis; whether it be from magazines, books, TV, radio, or other individuals.
What’s the difference between a Nutritionist and a Dietitian?
A nutritionist is quite similar to a dietitian but differs on many levels. Dietitians, in Canada, are trained institutionally, meaning they work in institutions like hospitals, retirement home facilities, and other government run establishments. They are trained to follow the Canada food guide when dealing with clients and/or meal plans, and work according to those guidelines.
Holistic Nutritionists are trained in a broad range of modalities alongside their standard nutritional training, including: Ayurveda, Energy Medicine, and Herbal Medicine. These fields have a great deal of significance when dealing with clients nutritionally and are therefore included as part of the holistic training.
Why is Holistic Nutrition Important?
Advantage of Holistic Nutrition Treatment Holistic Nutrition is one key to developing and maintaining a state of health that is optimal for you. Poor diets, coupled with a sedentary lifestyle contribute to many causes of health problems in North America.
Treating someone with Nutrition is easy, we eat 5-6 times a day and eating well can be preventative to illness. Just because you have a genetic predisposition to disease doesn’t mean that is your destiny. Living preventatively through whole foods can reduce your chance of disease.
Here are some other benefits of treatment with a Holistic Nutritionist:
All natural treatment
Food based treatment, side effect free
Improve diet quality & digestion
Increase energy levels, and therefore, productivity
Learn how to alkalize your diet and thereby maintain optimal pH balance
Weight management
Balances hormones naturally
Strengthen the immune system and overall health
Improve recovery time, sports or surgery
Relief of fatigue
Relief from allergies
Reduce and support your body during times of stress through diet and nutrition
Balances blood sugar problems
Relief from constipation
Learn simple and natural ways to reduce high blood pressure &/or high cholesterol
Adopt an anti-inflammatory diet: understanding inflammation and its role in disease and auto-immunity
Successfully manage chronic health conditions, such as: diabetes arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, IBS, IBD, colitis, Crohn's, and gout with nutrition
Learn how to make healthy choices when dining out and traveling abroad
Learn the nutritional approach to acne, obesity, fatigue, colds & influenza, headaches and viral infections
Reduce environmental and chemical stressors
the list goes on...
How does this work for me?
Well, let me give you an idea: If I were to take a room of 100 cardiac patients, they all have the same diagnosis, Coronary Artery Disease (CAD).
What we look at is — HOW did they get there?
What is the background?
When did it start?
How was their lifestyle?
What is their menu like?
What kind of emotional and physical trauma do they have in their history that has led them to where they are now?
Look at their current state of health.
How is it manifesting?
How are they coping?
What medications are they taking?
Can this be contributing to depletions adding to symptoms?
How are they eating or living?
Every single one of those 100 CAD patients has their own journey to their diagnosis. Thats what we look at. Not just the CAD diagnosis.
The advantage of holistic treatment is that it is based on them, not cookie cutter "here, take this list and eat this" format, or "take this laundry list of supplements and let's chat in a month".
A good nutritionist will be food based, with supplements, herbs, tinctures cycling in and out of your menu as you progress throughout treatment plan and achieve your health goals. We educate our patients on how to eat, recognize symptoms and what they mean and how they can manage them. So that they can work on their own, and not always need us.
Pathology (body manifesting illness from internal imbalances) is universal. I am a big proponent of looking at pathology, investigating the signs and symptoms of illness. The body is the body. It will show me via symptoms, what is unbalanced. Which makes this system of integrated medicine universal. Anyone, at any age or any stage of health can benefit from Holistic Nutrition. It's food. That is a basic need, use it to your advantage as much as possible.
We help you manage your health naturally, because that is what our bodies need.
Influence your health with every bite. It is that easy.