10 Benefits of Seeing a Dietitian or Nutritionist

Takeaway: Working with a dietitian or nutritionist can help you cut through the noise of diet culture and get personalized support for your unique health goals. Whether you're managing a medical condition, healing your relationship with food, or just want to feel better in your body, expert guidance can make all the difference.



At Restored Purpose Counseling, we offer comprehensive multidisciplinary services to support you on your journey to recovery and wellness. One aspect of our services is individual nutrition counseling with registered dietitian nutritionists. Our RDs offer medical nutrition therapy and are all specifically trained and educated on working with individuals with eating disorders or individuals with disordered eating habits. We know that sometimes there can be questions around the need for a dietitian as a part of an outpatient team so we'd like to explore some of the benefits of nutritionist services with you in this blog.

Why see a nutritionist or dietitian?

There's not a lot of information that exists explaining the value that a registered dietitian nutritionist adds to the outpatient team and their role on the treatment team and during recovery. Our blog post today aims to identify the many benefits of a dietitian. We have organized these benefits by category to help highlight our practice's unique ability to support the whole person and the holistic approach that our providers take to wellness and health.

Physical Health Benefits

By working with a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), you will establish healthy eating habits. You may work collaboratively with your provider to establish a nutrition plan which will support many bodily functions imperative for health such as digestion, metabolism, hormonal balance, regular menstrual cycles and sustained energy levels.

Prevents or Reverses Medical Complications

Working with a dietitian can help you manage several chronic diseases and/or chronic illnesses. For example, clients with Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes could see blood sugar stabilizations and support with identifying foods that can meet nutrition needs. Additionally, those with a chronic illness such as irritable bowel syndrome, food allergies, or those who are struggling with gut health may find meal planning with the help of a dietitian to be supportive in creating a healthy diet and a healthy lifestyle. For example, antioxidants in fruits and vegetables can assist in preventing and fighting chronic disease or illness but also support your mental health.

Manages Chronic Diseases and Chronic Illnesses

By meeting with a registered dietitian consistently, you can have the confidence that you are receiving the nutrients that your body needs to support you throughout your daily life. They are more than happy to educate you on your caloric needs as well as micro- and macronutrients and how all of these elements work together to promote medical stabilization and physical health. 

Restores Nutritional Balance

Working with a Registered and Licensed Dietitian can help reduce anxiety around certain kinds or types of food. If you are a person who hyper-focuses on food labels, weight gain, weight loss, or have been described by others to be the "food police", you may benefit from working with a dietitian. They can help support you by myth-busting fad diets and educating you on weight management and what a true healthy body weight is. They can help by structured meal planning and through exposure therapies to desensitize fear foods and challenge disordered thinking. 

Engaging in consistent nutritional counseling can promote sustainable and lasting habits such as intuitive eating, mindful practices, and self-compassion. Some of these skills, such as mindfulness and self-compassion can help support mental and emotional health as well. 

Reduces Food-Related Anxiety

Improves Body Image and Relationship with Food

Lack of nutrition in your diet can make depression harder to fight. Without the energy that food gives us, your energy levels will quickly decrease and motivation to engage in healthier habits will dwindle. Working with a registered dietitian can support overall emotional regulation and support you on your health journey. When you are nourishing your body consistently through a balanced diet, you can expect to see improvement with mood stability, focus, concentration, and a reduction in obsessive thoughts around food and your body. 

Supports Emotional Regulation

Meeting and working with a registered dietitian can help create sustainable habits, not only nutrition-related but in other areas as well such as exercise habits, consistent grocery shopping, and even improved sleep patterns. By creating nutritional habits, you can foster lasting skills in other areas as a result of improved balanced eating and engagement in self care.

Creates Sustainable Habits

When you trust your body, you can make food choices free of guilt and fear which can increase your autonomy. This can come in the form of improved general health, improved overall health, eating more of your favorite foods, and advocating for what your body needs and what you need and/or want.

Increases Autonomy

With consistent, nutritious, and balanced meals, your body escapes survival mode which allows you to experience life to its full potential. You may experience a rejuvenated passion for social experiences and interactions, as well as increased energy levels allowing you to engage more fully in your hobbies, school, work, and relationships.

Overall Health Benefits

FAQs about working with a dietitian or nutritionist

Re-establishes Regular Bodily Functions

Having a dietitian as a part of your health care team can help prevent and/or reverse medical complications. Some common medical complications that arise as a result of eating disorders that a dietitian can help manage include: heart disease or irregularities (such as tachycardia or bradycardia), electrolyte imbalances, bone density loss, and gastrointestinal distress. 

Mental & Emotional Health Benefits

Improves Quality of Life

What’s the difference between a dietitian and a nutritionist?

All dietitians are nutritionists but not all nutritionists are dietitians. This is an important phrase to remember that can be helpful in beginning to understand the differences between the two titles. Dietitians are recognized medical professionals who have completed formal education requirements and are required to complete continuing education credits, while nutritionists are often self-proclaimed with no oversight or licensing requirements. Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist however the titles of Registered Dietitian and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RD or RDN) are ones that can only be used by those individuals who have met requirements set for that discipline. RDNs can provide medical nutrition therapy and nutrition counseling. All of our dietitians are Registered Dietitian Nutritionists and are experienced and trained in working with those with eating disorders.

When should I see a nutritionist or dietitian?

What can I expect from my first appointment?

In your first appointment with one of our Registered Dietitian Nutritionists you will go over your health history as a means to help your provider understand where you're at currently with nutrition. You will also have the opportunity to share some goals that you have in mind that you'd like to work toward. Your provider is also available during that session to answer any questions you may have on the process or what your work with them will look like and how they can best support you. All of our dietitians work hard to individualize your plan and time in session according to what you need and what you'd like to focus on. No two dietitian sessions look the same and will vary greatly from person to person, even if the presenting concern is the same.

Final thoughts

We hope that this blog was helpful in identifying some of the many benefits that you can experience as a result of adding on a dietitian to your outpatient team. It can be hard to understand the benefits objectively without experiencing them, so we encourage you to give our administrative team a call today. They can assist you with setting up a free 15-minute consultation with any of our dietitians so that you can learn more about how they can support you in meeting your nutrition goals.  

Don't just take our word for it! Read below for an anonymized story from one of our dietitians on the work they did with an adolescent and the benefits she experienced as a result of their work together.

 "I once worked with a teen who decided she no longer needed snacks and would only eat three very small meals a day. She was scared. Her mom was scared. They both felt lost when they came to me. Over time, I helped this client understand that she was worthy of nourishment and that food holds no moral value. She eventually made peace with food and found genuine joy in eating again. She was able to quiet the negative thoughts in her head and reclaim her sense of self. Her mom also began to rebuild her confidence—both in herself and in her daughter's safety. As a dietitian, my support extends beyond the client—I support the entire family. Eating disorders affect everyone: the client, their friends, and their loved ones. When this client was ready to be discharged, we created a personalized safety plan so they felt prepared for the future. Both she and her mom knew I was just a text away if they ever needed support again."

All of our dietitians have immediate openings and look forward to working with you/your loved one to support you on your wellness journey. Don't just read about the benefits, experience them for yourself. Check out their bios and reach out today to schedule your free 15 minute consultation or first appointment!