Do you offer face to face consultations?
Yes, my clinic hours are based at the Shoreham Osteopath Clinic on Mondays 9am-12pm. I can also offer some face to face or online appointments outside of these hours. Please get in contact to discuss your requirements.

Will I be given supplements?
Supplements may be recommended if beneficial to your own Nutrition and Lifestyle Plan. I take a real food approach when working with people, so focussing on food and other lifestyle behaviours will be the priority. If supplements are recommended, this will be discussed with you and brands will be recommended to best suit your own needs.

Will I have to undergo additional testing?
Some tests may be recommended to better identify what is causing your symptoms. For example, this could include saliva or blood tests to indicate vitamin and/or mineral deficiencies, breath tests or in some cases stool samples. If any tests are thought to be relevant to you, these will be discussed so you can make an informed decision as to whether or not to go ahead with them. Testing through the GP or NHS will always be recommended wherever possible, and recommendations of private testing will be made in the absence of accessing these services through the NHS.

What do you do as a Nutritional Therapist?
I work collaboratively with people on a 1:1 basis. This means being equal partners in helping you to reach your goals. It many ways, you probably already have the answers you need, and have tried things before that work well for you. In our sessions we can build on this and develop a strategy together that works for you in line with your current goals. Beyond the consultations, I will spend an additional 2-3 hours per session researching your case, and writing up plans and recommendations. I also spend time engaged in Supervision with other Nutritional Therapists and engage in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to ensure I am delivering Nutritional Therapy in line with the most up to date evidence based practice.

Will I be told what I can and can't eat?
Not quite. Together we'll talk about your food and eating routines, and how this might affect you day to day. There is no one-fix for everyone. Nutritional Therapy is about taking a personalised approach, and recognising your own needs around food. For some, this might mean they are able to make changes best by having a whole new menu plan and shopping list. For others, change might need a more gradual approach with small changes being made and built on over time. The approach that I take is working towards a real food way of eating, but the choice of how we do that depends on you.

How is your pricing calculated?
Prices for consultations reflect additional time spent per session and per case. For each consultation, an additional 2-3 hours will be spent researching your case, compiling recommendations and meal plans and general case and business management. There are also business overhead costs such as rent, insurance and registration fee's to enable me to practice as a BANT accredited Nutritional Therapist.

How will you store my data?
All information you share will be stored inline with GDPR and the Food Together Data Privacy Policy. All information you share will be stored securely online on a secure Client Management System called "Practice Better".

How is Nutritional Therapy regulated?
To become an accredited Nutritional Therapist, you need to undertake training via a BANT accredited Nutritional Therapy degree. BANT (The British Association of Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine) are regulated by the CNHC (Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council). This ensures that practitioners are upholding the highest standard of practice in terms of ethics, practicing within the scope of Nutritional Therapy, adhering to data and privacy laws, practitioners have to undertake regular CPD (Continuing Professional Development) to ensure they are following the latest evidence based practice. For more information you can visit the BANT or CNHC websites.

What is the difference between a Nutritional Therapist, Nutritionist and Dietitian?
These terms can sometimes be used interchangeably, however there are key differences between each role. Dietitians are training and regulated by the British Dietetic Association and are trained to work within the NHS. This generally involves following NHS Eat Well guidance and managing acute cases such as those needing feeding tubes or dietary control for diabetes management or cardiovascular health. Roles in the NHS are limited, and wait lists can be long with limited time spent per case due to the pressures of the service.

Nutritionists work in the field of nutrition, for example in nutrition science, public health or working for food companies. Some nutritionists can run group sessions and offer generalised advice around eating well.

Nutritional Therapists are trained to work with people on an individual basis. Nutritional Therapy takes a functional approach to health, which means looking at the root cause of ill health. The gut is one of the main drivers for ill health, the health of which is influenced a lifetime of various experiences, trauma and lifestyle factors; with food and nutrition being one of the most influential factors in ensuring the systems in our bodies are able to function as they need to.

 

Will you share my details with my GP?

You will be asked if you are happy to consent for information to be shared with your GP. It is important that we work in collaboration with other healthcare providers, both within and outside of the NHS. If you decide not to consent, any information of concern may still need to be passed on to relevant people such as your GP or other healthcare professional, however this will be discussed with you at the time on a case by case basis.