Here’s a really short log. At least twice a month I receive requests for “meal planning” or “diet/food coaching”.
There’s a short, a longer and a long answer for that:
Short: NO.
Longer: my work ethic.
(1 ) I understand that professional regulation for certain health sciences is loose or non-existent in the USA, unlike in my country of origin, Brazil. I defend strict professional regulation with a licensing organism – one for each profession (and not a multitude of certifying bodies). There is a reason a licensed nutritionist is legally allowed to prescribe a diet. It is expected that his training, internship and experience have given him certain extra-academic abilities. I may know more biochemistry than the dietitian does and people mistake the fact that I write technical articles on food and supplements with the ability to prescribe a diet.
(2 ) The health sciences share (or should share, were the basic curriculum nationally unified) a common learning demand or disciplinary track. They should all share mandatory classes on human anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, physics, microbiology and molecular biology. They should also have pharmacology, cell biology, embryology and evolutionary biology but good luck with that. The majority of biochemistry classes in health-related fields, if mandatory, are less than 4 credit classes (one semester only). Students’ mastery of basic metabolic routes is between non-existent (“I vaguely remember”) to poor. My undergraduate biochemical education required me to memorize this, for example:
My master’s degree organic chemistry education required me to memorize this, for example:
But I didn’t see a single patient and knowing mechanisms doesn’t teach you how to fix them. Therefore, prescribing a diet, for me, is as unethical and should be as illegal as prescribing pharmacological or physical-therapy treatment. Yet, for some reason, it is considered shocking that someone illegally practices medicine and prescribes antibiotics, but not shocking if that person prescribes a potentially harmful diet or a set of rehab exercises that can actually make the patient’s injury chronic.
What I can and often do is, if the person is so inclined, help them learn about nutrition, give them a few books and articles to read and recommend what I think are good food log apps. In other words, I can help them take care of their own diet. For many people, if they are healthy, that’s enough or at least a good start. If I judge the person is not healthy and/or is obviously reckless, all I do is give them a list of licensed dietitians.
For evidence-based articles (this is a "coach log"), click on the "article" link at my author page
