Practicing as a functional nutritionist can feel intimidating at times.  All of that looking at root causes and multiple systems …. I hear you! 

It surely requires a different level of knowledge than the traditional model of nutritional counseling. 

I've been a health provider for over 30 years and I still believe any medical advice can be intimidating, simply because we are dealing with people’s lives and we want to support our clients in making the smartest health care choices.

Practicing as a functional nutritionist was a natural fit for me right from the start. But, the learning curve is steep.

Functional medicine is the proverbial onion, with lots of layers. Layers that require knowledge of many biological functions.

You really can’t wing it as a functional nutritionist. You may just crash land and well, it’s pretty hard to hide a crash landing….clients will know it.

I’ve seen practitioners crash land and it isn’t pretty…..and it leads to clients clinician shopping.

You also just can’t toss a bunch of lab work and supplements at your clients and claim you are practicing functional nutrition.

It will catch up to you and worst of all, you are not helping your clients and potentially may be increasing your professional liability. 

We also can't forget that traditional care still holds value. Confident and competent care is a balance —and knowing your flight path.

The fact is-the changing healthcare landscape is increasing the demand for clinicians trained in integrative and functional nutrition. 

I strongly believe all nutritionists should practice from a functional medicine perspective, regardless of speciality—pediatrics, sports, cardiovascular etc. Your speciality doesn’t matter.

A functional medical perspective is just as its name implies, an understanding of the anatomy and physiology (functionality) of the body and the paths to identifying the underlying factors to illness and health. For me, ultimately, the goal is to restore function, at whatever level—improved cell function, improved organ function, improved system function—and of course the pièce derésistance—improved function in life. In nursing, ADL’s (activity of daily living) is a major focus of nursing care. Can someone achieve their ADLs before discharge? Functional nutrition/medicine takes ADL achievement to a different level.

Identifying and addressing the root cause, after all, is what leads to healing.

When I first graduated, nutrition protocols, were one size fits all….and they are still alive in nutrition.

Protocols in nutrition sound reassuring and may be prudent at times, but only to a point. 

Understanding principles and critical thinking is the road to becoming a successful functional practitioner and enables you to having a sound rationale for every clinical decision you make including labs and supplement recommendations.

For example, supplements surely can be expensive. Being able to prioritize supplements, for a client who may be on a budget means an understanding of nutrition and physiology so you can triage their nutritional needs — what will give them the biggest bang for their buck.

Adding more functional navigation to you nutrition care allows a well planned out flight path, which will give you a much greater chance of a smooth landing.

You may take some twists and turns in that flight path but your navigation is based on sound knowledge tailored to your client.

Yes, practicing as a functional nutritionist takes more time in preparation and more training, but hands down, it has made me a better clinician.

I encourage all registered dietitians, registered nurses and whomever may be giving out nutrition advice to be navigating from a more functional flight path, with steady wings, no winging it.

Know your rationale for all of your clinical decisions.

Your client care will not regret it.