What are the advantages & disadvantages of nutritional therapy?

Your doctor may refer you to a dietitian for nutritional treatment to ensure that your health condition may be the best diet. A qualified dietitian will assess your current diet and help you develop a meal plan that will allow you to learn healthier eating habits. Medical nutrition therapy, or MNT, can bring many benefits to your health.

Nutritional food on the table with a laptop. (Photo: amanaimagesRF / amana images / Getty Images)

Health effects

According to the American Dietetic Association, MNT can improve health or prevent through dietary adjustment complication. If you are overweight or have certain diseases, including certain types of cancer, heart disease, food allergies, you may benefit from MNT, HIV or AIDS, kidney disease, or type 1 or type 2 diabetes. One disadvantage of MNT is that you may need to follow a strict diet to see the benefits.

Expenses

A potential disadvantage of nutritional treatment is the high cost of food. You may need to purchase special products, such as certain brands of nutritional shakes, or foods that are more expensive than your usual food. Appointments with dietitians may be additional costs. However, the cost of nutritional therapy may be lower than the amount saved by improving your health through a good diet. In addition, some insurance plans, such as Medicare, cover nutritional treatment.

Non-Invasive Medicine

One of the benefits of medical nutrition therapy or MNT is that unlike clinics that require regular dosing at the clinic, you can follow the diet at home. Another advantage is that you often have a lot of freedom to choose food. For example, according to MayoClinic.com, if your diabetes diet contains a certain amount of healthy fat, you can choose from a variety of options such as avocado, olive oil, almond or peanut oil.

] Other effects

Nutritional treatment of certain diseases can sometimes prevent or improve other health conditions. For example, nutritional treatment for type 2 diabetes is designed to help you control your blood sugar levels. According to MayoClinic.com, diabetic diets can also lower blood triglycerides and help you lose weight.Reduce the risk of heart disease. p's own nutritional treatment is not enough to restore or treat a wide variety of health conditions, and additional lifestyle options, such as regular exercise and no smoking, can help you stay healthy.