7 Reasons to See a Dietitian

Registered dietitians (RDs) are nutrition professionals who have completed extensive education and training and can treat many nutrition-related health concerns through food.

In addition, dietitians can teach you about healthy eating and how to make sustainable health goals while staying motivated. 

Whether you are trying to manage a chronic disease or just feel confused about nutrition, a registered dietitian can help.

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Why Should I See a Dietitian?

There are many reasons to see a dietitian for nutrition guidance. Here are some reasons to seek out RD guidance:

You Have Digestive Symptoms

Your food significantly impacts your digestive system, but sometimes, it’s hard to determine which foods are causing symptoms like gas, bloating, diarrhea, or constipation. 

A gut health dietitian can help you identify potential food sensitivities or intolerances and guide you through an elimination diet (if needed) to help you find relief. 

A recent study found that supporting irritable bowel syndromes (IBS) through diet changes was significantly more effective at reducing symptoms and improving quality of life than medication.

If you have any digestive symptoms—it can be helpful to meet with a dietitian to receive personalized support. 

You Have Diabetes, Prediabetes, or Gestational Diabetes 

A dietitian who specializes in diabetes or gestational diabetes can work with you to determine optimal blood sugar goals for your body and work with you to create a nutrition plan that works with your preferences and lifestyle. 

By teaching you about carbohydrates and how food affects your blood sugar, a dietitian can teach you to make informed choices about your food intake. They will consider all the factors that influence blood sugar, including sleep, exercise, stress, and medications, to help you feel confident.

Your Child is Under or Overweight or Wants to Learn Healthy Eating Habits

A dietitian who works with children can help your child develop a positive relationship with food and nutrition from an early age by emphasizing nourishing and strengthening the body through food choices.

Discussing nutrition and weight management with children takes extra care to avoid any language that may cause guilt or shame around food choices.

Whether your child works directly with a dietitian or you meet separately for support, a dietitian can help your child develop a healthy attitude toward nutrition that will support their health through adulthood.

You’re Going Through Cancer Treatment

A dietitian provides an extra layer of care and support when you’re going through cancer treatment. Treatment can make you too tired to eat or prepare food and can impact your appetite.

Side effects of treatment can also impact nutrition if you experience nausea, vomiting, fatigue, dry mouth, and other symptoms that make it challenging to eat enough food. 

Working with a dietitian who specializes in cancer can help you find ways to fuel your body to get the calories and nutrients you need to stay strong through treatment.

You Play Sports and Want to Fuel Your Body

Sports dietitians help athletes properly fuel their bodies. They can help you understand what types of foods are recommended for your specific goals.

For example, an endurance athlete may have different recommendations than a power-lifter), how many calories you need to meet your needs, and when to eat to optimize performance and recovery,

A sports dietitian can also help sort through many of the supplement recommendations you see or hear on social media to determine which are safe and helpful and which to avoid. They will also help you determine water goals so you stay hydrated.

You Have a History of Disordered Eating 

A registered dietitian trained in eating disorders can help you relearn how to eat in a way that nourishes your body and promotes a healthy relationship with food.

They can help you develop meal and recipe ideas that feel safe, work with you to recognize triggers for disordered eating behaviors, and develop coping strategies to work through challenging situations.

A dietitian can also work with other members of your healthcare team (with your permission), like a therapist, to create a comprehensive plan to support you through eating disorder recovery.

You Want to Learn More About Nutrition and Foods to Eat

You don’t need to have a specific health concern to see a dietitian. A registered dietitian is a great resource if you want to learn more about nutrition, ask questions about what foods to eat, or seek advice about your diet.

Dietitians stay up-to-date on the latest food and nutrition research, so meeting with an RD is also an opportunity to ask a credible expert about the diet trends and headlines you may see while scrolling through your newsfeed.

Whether you want to learn how to meal prep, add more plants into your diet, or simply create a more balanced and nourishing eating pattern, a dietitian can guide you in the right direction.

7 Signs You Should See a Dietitian

Continue reading to learn the top reasons why you may need to see a registered dietitian. 

1. You’re Struggling to Follow a Specialized Diet 

There are many cases a person might need to follow a specialized diet for health reasons.

Sometimes, these diets can be very restrictive, making them challenging to follow. 

For example, a person newly diagnosed with celiac disease must start following a completely gluten-free diet.

This can be a huge transition for some people, especially if gluten-containing foods are currently a staple in their diet. 

When you’re used to eating a certain way, having a new eating plan imposed on you by a healthcare provider can feel overwhelming, and you might be concerned that you won't be able to eat your favorite foods anymore. 

A registered dietitian can help you understand how to follow a specialized diet successfully.

They can provide tips on meal planning, eating out, and acceptable substitutions for eating plans, including:

• Low sodium diet. 
• Low-fat diet.
• Low FODMAP diet.
• Gluten-free diet. 
• Low or high fiber diet. 
• Food allergy-friendly diet. 

2. You Have Unhealthy Eating Habits 

It can be challenging to prioritize a healthy diet, especially when busy with school, work, family or other obligations.

You may notice your eating habits negatively impact how you feel, including your energy levels, digestion, ability to focus, and sleep quality. 

If you think your eating habits could be improved, you may benefit from working with a registered dietitian.

You don’t need to have a specific health condition to see a dietitian. 

A registered dietitian can make suggestions to optimize your eating habits to help you feel your best both mentally and physically.

They will work with your food preferences and lifestyle to create a realistic and sustainable plan.

This plan may involve strategies for eating more fiber-rich foods, prioritizing regular meal times throughout the day, or lifestyle tips like practicing good sleep hygiene.  

3. You’ve Lost Interest in Food or Eating

If you’ve lost interest in eating, or your favorite foods don’t sound good anymore, it’s best to talk to a doctor first. 

An underlying condition can often contribute to a loss of appetite or interest in food, like gastrointestinal conditions, cancer, eating disorders, or depression.

Other times, it may be due to a side effect from a new medication or treatment.

Regardless of the cause, a lack of interest in eating can result in unintentional weight loss or nutritional deficiencies from not eating enough.

Once you and your doctor have figured out why you’ve lost your appetite, the next step is to talk with a registered dietitian to learn how to prioritize eating again. 

Your dietitian can give you ideas for easy and nutritious meals to eat and may suggest you start eating on a schedule of smaller, more frequent meals. 

4. You're Having Difficulty Changing Your Diet 

It can be challenging to change your diet for a few reasons.

The way you eat is based on habits, which can take time to adjust. In addition, many social situations are centered around eating, making it hard to adhere to your goals. 

A registered dietitian can help you if you’re having difficulty changing your diet.

Dietitians have training in counseling techniques, like motivational interviewing, that can inspire you to make dietary changes that benefit your health and well-being.  

A dietitian will also help you create specific goals that feel realistic, sustainable, and flexible.

For example, a plan to “eat less salt” is broad and nonspecific, which can make it difficult to execute.

Instead, your dietitian might help you set a goal like: “Limit takeout to one time per week to reduce sodium intake.”

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5. You Have Nutrition-Related Health Conditions 

Many health conditions can be influenced by our food choices.

‍Medical nutrition therapy is a type of nutrition counseling centered around making dietary changes to improve or prevent a health condition. 

Registered dietitians are extensively trained in medical nutrition therapy for a wide range of conditions, including: 

• Diabetes.
• Heart disease.
• Kidney disease.
• High blood pressure. 
• Obesity. 
• Gastrointestinal conditions. 

You may benefit from seeing a registered dietitian if you have a nutrition-related health condition.

Your dietitian will teach you evidence-based strategies to help you improve your symptoms and lab work through diet and lifestyle changes. 

For example, if you have type 2 diabetes, a dietitian can help you understand which foods spike your blood sugar and how to eat to help your A1c (the three-month average of your blood sugar) stay within a healthy range.

They may also develop an exercise plan and teach stress management strategies. 

6. You Keep Reaching Plateaus in Weight Loss 

If you’re on a weight management journey, you may encounter plateaus along the way.

A weight plateau is when the number on the scale stays the same despite maintaining your eating and exercise plan. 

Weight plateaus are caused by a combination of hormonal and metabolic changes that happen during weight loss, leading to increased hunger and fatigue. 

Stalls in weight loss can be frustrating and discouraging.

Sometimes they can cause people to lose motivation and give up on their goals. 

Registered dietitians are trained to give you evidence-based advice on weight management and help you create healthy and sustainable habits that can address metabolism, hormonal, and energy issues resulting from prolonged dieting or restriction.

Your dietitian will examine your current eating, exercise, and stress management habits and help you find areas to adjust to heal your metabolism and increase your energy.  

Weight management is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Your dietitian will create an individualized plan to help you get back to feeling your best. 

7. You Feel Confused About Nutrition Information

There is endless amounts of nutrition information online, and if you read enough of it, you’ll find many sources have conflicting recommendations.

It’s normal to have questions about how specific nutrition topics apply to you. 

For example, you may have seen conflicting advice regarding controversial nutrition topics like:

• Eggs and cholesterol.
• Intermittent fasting. 
• Artificial sweeteners. 
• Gluten.

If you have many questions about nutrition, consider booking an appointment with a registered dietitian.

Because dietitians went through extensive schooling and training, they are experts at evaluating the current research and helping you understand what it means for your diet. 

Bring a list of questions to your first appointment so you can maximize your time with the dietitian and cover everything you are interested in learning about.

Talking with a dietitian is the best way to get evidence-based nutrition advice.  

What Else Can a Dietitian Help With?

In addition to all of the above, dietitians also can provide nutrition counseling for the following concerns:

• Kidney disease.
• Heart health.
• High blood pressure.
• Food allergies.
• Pregnancy and breastfeeding.
• Perimenopause and menopause.
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
• Healthy aging.

A dietitian can also act like a coach to guide you through health or medical concerns.

A dietitian may suggest requesting additional labs from your doctor or refer you to other providers, like a therapist, if psychological factors are at play or a personal trainer for more exercise guidance.

A dietitian also has more time to spend with you than your doctor, so they can provide extra education about your health condition so you can have a deeper understanding of how it impacts your health.

Takeaway

A registered dietitian can help you in many ways throughout your health journey, from teaching you how to eat a more nutritious diet to motivating you to achieve your nutrition goals.

A dietitian can be especially useful if you have a nutrition-related health condition or need a specialized diet. 

In addition to creating an individualized eating plan and helping you set realistic goals, your dietitian can also answer nutrition questions and explain how food choices impact your health. 

Managing Your Health with an RD 

Whether you have a nutrition-related health condition or just want to learn more about healthy eating, you can benefit from working with a registered dietitian. 

By working with a nutrition expert, you will receive up-to-date, evidence-based advice and an individualized plan based on your food preferences, lifestyle, and medical history. 

Consider trying Nourish to be matched with an online registered dietitian to help you manage your health concerns. Nourish accepts most insurance plans, with most of our patients paying $0 out of pocket. 

Find a dietitian who accepts insurance through Nourish now.