Nutritional Therapy is the application of nutrition and lifestyle medicine sciences in the promotion of health, peak performance and individual care. Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners (NTP) assess and identify potential nutritional and biochemical imbalances via extensive health questionnaires, lab testing and biochemistry knowledge, to understand how these may contribute to an individual’s symptoms and health concerns. Practitioners consider each individual to be unique and recommend personalised nutrition and lifestyle programmes rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach using the evidence-based Functional Medicine Model designed by the Institute of Functional Medicine. Functional medicine is a systems biology–based approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the root cause of disease, as opposed to treating symptoms like in conventional medicine. Each symptom or differential diagnosis may be one of many contributing factors to an individual’s illness.
Personalised nutrition is tailored specifically for you, taking into account your health journey, your health goals and dietary preferences. The practitioner may use functional tests to inform the recommendations that are based on your unique biological individuality. Personalised nutrition consultations are relevant for individuals with chronic conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis; anyone with persistent digestive issues or those wishing to support an autoimmune condition, as well as those looking to enhance their health and wellbeing. Recommendations are not a replacement for medical advice; practitioners frequently work alongside medical professionals to support individuals’ wellbeing.
BANT registerered Nutritional Therapy Practitioner are trained to a minimum degree levels and trained to work on in a 1-to-1 clinical settings with clients. Recommendations are not a replacement for medical advice; Nutritional Therapy Practitioners frequently work alongside medical professionals to support individual’s wellbeing with or without prescribed medications. Understanding how a drug works and may cause nutrient insufficiencies and side effects, and how a nutrient may block or stimulate pathways targeted by a drug leading to adverse reactions, is crucial to how NTs work to safeguard and improve the health of their clients. The field of personalised nutrition is still evolving before truly becoming an integral part of the future healthcare paradigm, and including personalised nutrition guidance and therapeutics.
CLINICAL TRAINING
As part of my clinical training, I have completed an extensive, supervised clinical practice diploma with various clients experiencing a wide range of chronic diseases, which also involves studying the pathophysiology of chronic diseases with special consideration to client safety and drug-nutrient-herb interactions, and understanding how nutrient availability, biochemical imbalances, genetic predispotion and lifestyle factors, may influence disease predisposition and development. He has supported a number of patients experiencing Myocardial infarction, severe obesity, Long COVID, Crohn’s disease, Fibromyalgia, Rheumatoid arthritis, Systemic lupus erythematosus, Raynaud’s disease, Mixed connective tissue disease, Sjögren’s syndrome, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, hypertension, insomnia and many others.
Clinical training is internally validated by the UK Nutriton Therapy Education Commission (NTEC) and externally endorsed by QUALIFI UK. NTEC accredited nutritional therapy courses are professionally accredited to the standard required for entry to an accredited register held by the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) on behalf of the UK Professional Standards Authority (PSA), the same body that overseas dieticians and GPs via their respective regulatory bodies. Students who follow courses that do not meet this standard will not be able to apply for professional registration as a Nutritional Therapay Practitioner, until they have accrued three years clinical experience of working at the level of the National Occupational Standards, evidenced by the submission of a detailed portfolio of evidence.
FOOD SUPPLEMENTS
I am clinically trained to be able to recommend evidence-based dietary supplement programmes to help support your symptoms and medical diagnoses, whilst considering potential drug – nutrient – herb interactions for your safety. Supplement programmes are evaluated periodically to ensure efficacy and safety and may change depending on symptoms progress, medically diagnoses and/or other contraindications.
REGULATORY BODIES
British Association for Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine (BANT)
I am a fully qualified registered member of BANT. To become a BANT-registered nutritional therapist, it is essential to have a very strong background in nutrition science at minimum degree level, a deep understanding of the human anatomy and physiology, many hours of supervised clinical practice with real clients living with a wide range of complex nutrition and health-related disorders whilst following practice guidelines by the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). The CNHC hold an accredited register of qualified nutritional therapists and registered nutritionists, who in turn are regulated by the UK Professional Standards Authority responsible to the UK Parliament. Nutritional Therapists also comply with General Data Protection Regulations. Click the on video above to find out more about our training and what we can achieve by working together.
NUTRITIONAL THERAPIST vs DIETICIAN
Both Nutritional Therapist and Dieticians are trained to very high standards, and undergo extensive clinical training via evidence-based research. Additionally, In April 2015 the General Medical Council UK (the GP Register is a list of doctors who are eligible for appointment as a general practitioner in the UK, and by extension, Gibraltar) released guidance confirming that “Doctors can refer patients to practitioners on Accredited Registers”. Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners are members of BANT, who in turn are registered in an ‘Accredited register” and therefore, they can be suitably referred to by General Practitioners.
BANT is a professional organisation for practitioners of nutrition and lifestyle medicine. BANT practitioner members are required to be registered either with Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) or be statutorily regulated. CNHC holds a register accredited by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA), an independent body accountable to the UK Parliament. Only Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners and Registered Dietitians are trained and qualified in clinical practice to meet national standards and work in a one-to-one setting. Registered Nutritionists have met training and qualification standards and work with groups, and the wider industry, academia and in non-clinical settings. BANT members are required to meet Continuing Professional Development (CPD) standards.
Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CHHC)
I am a CNHC registered practitioner. The CNHC is an independent UK regulator for complementary healthcare practitioners, set up with UK government support to protect the public by providing a UK voluntary register of health practitioners. CNHC’s register has been approved as an Accredited Register by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care who are accountable to the UK Parliament, and the same regulatory body that oversees the General Medical Council which regulates doctors in Gibraltar and the UK. Therefore, by choosing complementary health practitioners registered with the CNHC you can be confident that they are properly qualified and insured.
Code of Conduct, Ethics and Performance
The CNHC’s Code of Conduct, Ethics and Performance describes the standards of conduct, ethics and performance expected of all complementary health practitioners on the CNHC Register. All registrants must agree to comply with the Code before their name is added to the CNHC Register.
Accredited Register:
CNHC’s register is approved as an Accredited Register by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, a body accountable to Parliament. This provides additional assurance that CNHC registrants meet UK-wide standards of patient safety and service quality.
