Frequently Asked Questions

To Better Health is different from commercial and fad diets in key ways:

1. Medical Professionals: All of our counselors are college-degreed, state licensed, board-credentialed medical professionals. We work closely with your doctors and you to craft science-based nutritional therapy plans that meet your unique health needs. From chronic disease management and eating disorders to weight management and digestive health, we can help you achieve your health goals.
2. Individualized Counseling: We listen to you and look deeper into the underlying causes of your condition. We understand that life events and medical conditions can slow down progress towards health goals. We work with you to understand how those challenges influence your behavior and status. Our nutrition education and plans help you develop strategies to help reduce barriers and achieve successful health management.
3. Healthy Lifestyle: Our focus is to help you learn how to get and stay healthy your entire life. Our healthy lifestyles education helps identify and bring about positive changes in food, physical activity, sleep and stress management habits.

A registered dietitian (RD/RDN) is a food and nutrition expert who has met college-level academic and professional requirements, but has also passed an Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics national board exam to qualify for the credential “RD/RDN.”

In addition to national RD/RDN credentialing, many states have regulatory laws for dietitians and nutrition practitioners. States may also issue licenses to dietitians.

Licensed dietitians (LD/LDN) are registered dietitians who have obtained state licensure and have been provided the credential of “LD” or “LDN”

Source: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

We treat a broad range of conditions that fall into one of four categories:

1. Health Maintenance: Many individuals are looking to maintain good health, reduce the onset of health problems, and/or improve their performance in amateur or competitive sports. We help many individuals achieve and maintain good health with weight management, balanced diets, food education, grocery shopping, food preparation, and eating out and on the go strategies. Our athletic clients tend to focus on nutritional changes that can effectively fuel their bodies, improve strength/endurance/agility, shorten recovery cycles, and prevent injury.
2. Chronic Disease Management: A large percentage of our population is struggling with moderate to serious medical conditions such as acid reflux, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome, obesity, and other health conditions. We offer a combination of solutions – including dietary education, physical activity guidelines, review of lab results and other health status indicators. A variety of strategies are used to help each individual reach their health goals.
3. Special Needs: Throughout life we have special health needs that require specialized medical attention. Circumstances may be related to pregnancy, growth and development, feeding and gastrointestinal challenges, and/or aging. Many unique health considerations can be significantly improved with proper nutrition. Nutrition therapy sessions focus on nutritionally balanced, calorie appropriate, advantageously timed, and easy to tolerate meals and snacks to support your health. We also provide strategies for grocery shopping, meal preparation, dining out, and eating on the go.
4. Eating Disorders: Many individuals struggle with emotional or psychological disorders that result in overeating or eating too little. Both can seriously jeopardize health. If you suffer from disordered eating, we can help you establish a positive relationship with food. We can teach you when and how to eat, and provide you with strategies to help identify the stressors or triggers that lead to overeating, binge eating, eating when not hungry, and/or avoiding food. We can also guide you to licensed clinical psychologists who can also help you manage your mental health and emotions associated with food.

Nutrition counseling is provided for many medical conditions. Below are some of the health conditions that are treated with medical nutrition therapy. Please contact us regarding your condition if it is not listed below.

• Amenorrhea (the absence of menstrual periods)
• Anemia (low blood count from iron, B12, and/or folic acid deficiencies)
• Athletic and sports performance nutrition
• Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder
• Autism spectrum, including Asperger’s syndrome and other autism-related eating and nutrition challenges
• Bariatric nutrition counseling and education for BEFORE and AFTER bariatric surgery including laparoscopic adjustable gastric band, vertical sleeve gastrectomy, and roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgeries
• Cancer
• Chronic Fatigue
• Diabetes, pre-diabetes, and blood glucose abnormalities including insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, type 1, type 2, gestational diabetes, and reactive hypoglycemia
• Eating disorders including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating
• Failure to thrive – adult and pediatric underweight
• Fibromyalgia
• Food Allergies
• Food Intolerances
• Gastrointestinal disorders: Acid reflux (gastroesophageal reflux/heartburn), gastrointestinal cancers, celiac disease (gluten intolerance), constipation, colitis, Crohn’s disease, diarrhea, diverticulosis / diverticulitis, feeding and swallowing difficulty, gallbladder disease (gallstones), gastritis, gastroparesis, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, indigestion, liver disease, nausea and vomiting, pancreatitis
• General health maintenance / preventive nutrition
• Gout
• Heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other cardiovascular diseases
• HIV / AIDS
• Hypoglycemia and reactive hypoglycemia (low blood glucose)
• Lupus
• Menopause
• Metabolic Syndrome
• Osteoporosis and Osteopenia
• Pediatric nutrition – infant, toddler, child, adolescent
• Picky Eating
• Pre-Pregnancy, pregnancy, breast-feeding and post-partum nutrition education
• Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Sleep Apnea
• Sports Performance and Fitness
• Thyroid Disease
• Vegetarian and Vegan Dietary Counseling
• Vitamin and mineral deficiencies including B-vitamins, iron, vitamin D, and other dietary deficiencies
• Weight management, including failure to thrive, underweight, overweight, and obesity

A member of your support network is welcome to participate with you in your nutrition counseling sessions.

Support from family, friends and the community is important. Individuals working to achieve and maintain behavior change benefit from positive reinforcement and social support.

Yes, counseling is provided to and for individuals of all ages, couples, and family members – including infants, toddlers, children, adolescents, adults and seniors.

Spouses, partners, children, parents, grandparents, and extended family members may have health concerns that they also want or need to address. Everyone in the family can benefit from medical nutrition therapy, and achieve individual and collective health goals. All are welcome to schedule an appointment.

Your health insurance policy dictates if you need an electronic referral or doctor’s script for a specialist visit. Please contact your health insurance company or employer, or consult your policy regarding the need for electronic referrals or scripts for nutrition counseling with a Licensed and Registered Dietitian.

Referrals and scripts MUST be obtained from your primary care physician/family doctor BEFORE your first and follow up nutrition counseling appointments. Please request multiple visits to avoid frequent requests for new referrals or scripts.

Referrals and scripts have an expiration date and/or a limited number of allowed visits. A new referral or script is required for appointments made after the expiration date and/or if all allowed visits have been used.