nutritional therapy faqs

"You are what you eat" is an old adage with great truth. What you eat and drink everyday gets broken down into different nutrients and chemicals which are used to create the building blocks for life. Without the right nutrients, you could not replenish skin, make blood, fight infection, or keep breathing! 

Nutritional therapy is an evidence-based approach which involves adapting current dietary intake (what you usually eat and drink) to positively impact issues and optimise overall health. 

I create a nutritional plan for you to follow which uses nutrients from food (and sometimes additional supplements) to address certain health issues. I often including some lifestyle and exercise recommendations too for a full body and mind treatment programme. It may also involve making changes to eating habits e.g. what time of day you eat, how much you chew. 

What it's not: Nutritional therapy is not about diagnosing diseases. I am not a doctor and I may recommend speaking to your GP if there are any areas of concern which I believe need medical investigation. I regularly work alongside GPs and specialists so we are all working for you together.

Nutritional therapy can help many problems. Here at The Gate I specialise in the following areas:

• Digestive issues and gut health
  • IBS and IBD
  • Bloating, reflux and discomfort
  • Constipation or diarrhorea 
  • Fatigue and fibromyalgia
• Weight management
  • Building long term health habits
  • Sustainable weight loss 
• Autoimmune diseases and associated disorders
  • e.g. SLE (Lupus), hypothyroidism, rheumatoid arthritis
  • Particular expertise with Sjogrens Syndrome (ask me about The Sjogren's Diet)
• Skin health and disorders 
  • e.g. rosacea, psoriasis
  • Acne
• Type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome management

Nutritional therapy is not a quick fix. It requires a certain level of time and consistency to allow the body to absorb and rejuvenate fully. 

More complex cases are a bit like detective work and we may try different ideas over a few months. This is often because as one symptom or issue is resolved, it shines a light on something else which needs to be addressed too. We work through them until you feel tip top!

Standard therapeutic programmes (for people with chronic issues) can last from 3-6 months (or beyond!) but I do see plenty of people on a more ad hoc basis and for general 'maintenance' checks. 

Click on the 'Services and Pricing' button below to see more details about what we offer. 

There is a lot of work in the background which you don't see!

When I take on a new client, we spend 1-1.5 hours face-to-face in the initial consultation. After that, I spend a minimum of 1-2 hours researching different avenues of interest which relate to your particular case before creating your bespoke nutritional plan. 

As well as analysis of your food diary (which you provide prior to the first consult) and the post-consult research, there may well be analysis of any tests we decide to conduct e.g. stool, food intolerance or genetic testing which also adds to the overall time I spend on your case. 

I believe transparency is key to trust and am always happy to share a breakdown of time spent working on different aspects of the therapy sessions if you want to better understand the fees and investment. 

I also run payment plans for longer term programmes so initial outlay is more manageable, and you can also buy gift cards if you want to send a bit of extra love to someone in need. 

Did you know that anyone can call themselves a nutritionist or nutritional therapist? A scary thought when this applies to relying on someone to help you with your health! 

Whether we work together or not, I strongly recommend that you only deal with registered nutritional therapists who have a solid clinical background. Online courses (of which there are plenty) do not provide the relevant experience required to help clients fully and are limited in terms of scientific biological knowledge. 

If in doubt, ask to see credentials (where they studied), the type of experience they have, governing bodies where they are registered, and check that they have indemnity insurance in place. 

I am a registered member of the British Association of Nutritional Therapists (BANT) and Association of Naturopathic Practitioners (ANP) and regular partake in continued professional development to keep up to date with new news. 

The goal here is that you create health habits which are sustainable for life. 

In some instances, you may need to make some shorter term and more intense changes, but these are always part of a longer term sustainable goal. 

'Nutrition' sounds pretty scientific and bland, but the root of good nutrition should be about filling your plates with a bounty of tasty and life affirming foods which bring you joy! 

And my personal ethos is "Don't get too obsessed with it!". Food should be fun and that's what we strive for at The Gate; creating a balance so you can enjoy food and drink whilst knowing that it's doing you good in the long run.