Integrative Nutrition® considers food’s emotional, mental, and spiritual components. Holistic nutritionists personalize plans and address clients’ overall well-being. Critics cite high costs and lack of regulation.
Integrative Nutrition® is a concept registered by the Institute for Integrative Nutrition® which states that food is not only about physical nutrition, but also has an emotional, mental and spiritual component. Many parts of this concept are more widely known as holistic nutrition and are taught by nutritionists who are not institute certified. This method has both supporters and detractors, but many people report positive results by adhering to this approach. Critics cite the expense of Institute for Integrative Nutrition® programs and the possibility of scams.
General concepts
Holistic nutrition looks at food, nutrition, wellness, and exercise not just in terms of calories or weight loss, but in physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual terms. A nutritionist working in this field learns a lot about different aspects of his clients; lives, including their mood, their health history, and even their sleep patterns. While holistic nutritionists can and do help with weight loss, they can also help with messy eating, anti-inflammatory diets, diabetes diets, and diets to extend a person’s active years.
A person’s emotions and spirituality are also important in holistic nutrition. Since the body is seen as connected to nutrition in this practice. Food is seen as only part of what a person needs to live a healthy and fulfilling life. Nutritionists help people choose food based on what they like and what makes them feel good, rather than based on its nutritional content. They also ask people to explore their emotions as they connect with food and to see how things like their careers or relationships impact the person’s relationship with food. Additionally, many see food as having a spiritual component and work with clients to determine what kind of spiritual impact eating has for them.
The Institute for Integrative Nutrition®
The Institute for Integrative Nutrition® in New York City emphasizes the importance of health and wellness as well as the personal, social and even political aspects of eating. Provides information on vegetarianism and veganism; macrobiotics; specific diets, such as the Atkins diet; and practices such as Ayurveda. This school of thought seeks to provide its students with a new way of looking at health by taking into consideration all the elements necessary to be not only healthy but also happy. It was founded by Joshua Rosenthal; famous graduates include Deepak Chopra and Jared Koch.
Potential benefits
Holistic or integrative nutrition® is seen by proponents as a more comprehensive nutritional assistance than other types of dietetics, as it addresses components of nutrition that are often excluded from other practices. In particular, many people enjoy the social and spiritual aspect of supplementary nutrition®. Some people have more success with weight loss or dietary changes with this type of diet than with others, as plans can be more personalized. This method is sometimes seen as very balanced, as it focuses on helping the client get the nutrition they need from whole foods, rather than through supplementation.
criticisms
Some critics of this approach believe it is contradictory or not well founded in nutrition science. In terms specific to the Institute of Integrative Nutrition®, some people have criticized it for being expensive and not providing its students with enough training to provide appropriate dietary advice. Because there is no accepted definition of what holistic nutrition is, standards of care among nutritionists who offer this service tend to vary. Also, because there is no international credentialing body for all integrative nutritionists, some people feel that there is no way to truly know the quality of a nutritionist offering supplemental advice, which leaves people open to scams.
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