Nutrition Health Specialist

How Does Nutrition Affect Health?

To some extent, naturopaths see food as medicine. There is no question that what people eat affects their health. To take one example, a calcium-rich diet in childhood and the teens are vital for strong bones and teeth. Children who drink soda and never eat leafy green vegetables are much less likely to have healthy bones and teeth. Foods grown in depleted soils may be deficient in important nutrients that affect health. Finally, too much of the wrong kinds of food promotes obesity and chronic disease.

What Is Naturopathic Nutrition?

Naturopathic nutrition takes a page from many traditional societies. The Chinese, for example, classify foods into hot and cold categories, and do the same with disease. To treat a cold disease, one uses warming foods, and vice versa. Food transfers energy from the plant or animal to the human; high-quality food means more and better-quality energy.

What About Detoxification?

The concept behind detoxification is that poor eating habits can result in an overload of substances that are literally toxic to the body. We are also exposed to a variety of chemicals in our foods, and in the soil, water and air. Cleaning out the toxic substances allows the body to regain a more natural state of health. The body naturally neutralizes, transforms or otherwise gets rid of unwanted substances; detoxification supports and helps this process — sort of like a spring cleaning inside the body.

What About Weight Loss?

Naturopathic physicians are often ideally situated to help patients who want to lose weight. First, they receive extensive training in nutrition and how it affects health. Second, they focus on the patient as an individual, which means customizing the weight loss plan and the diet to the patient. They understand that weight loss is not just a matter of calories, but of other issues like poor liver function, poor carbohydrate metabolism, food sensitivities, toxins stored in fat, intestinal yeast imbalance, and mental and emotional issues.