Registered Dietitian (RD)
Certified Diabetes Care & Education Specialist (CDCES)
Certified Lifestyle Coach
After realizing that I would not become a Spanish or Italian translator, despite having a B.A. in Italian Studies and passion for romance language and cultures, it was time for new plan. I found myself in sales and the product was always food related. From olive oil, to CSA boxes, to restaurants, I have always found a way to be near food.
Later, my Mom sent me a job post seeking a registered dietitian (RD). I hadn't heard of a dietitian. I found a few dietitians to interview, and decided this was the move for me. After 5 years studying hard sciences, nutrition, food service, doing a 1200 hour internship and passing an exam, I was a dietitian. It was not easy, and I loved the process.
My first position as an RD was in kidney dialysis at Zucherberg San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFGH). The patient population at SFGH has a high percentage of Spanish speaking patients, and I really enjoyed working with them (and everyone else!) I later accepted a foodservice position as Procurement Supervisor at UCSF Medical Center, Mission Bay. I ordered the food and metabolic formula for the children's hospital and supervised the receiving team who put away hundreds of cases of food every day. I loved my team. However, I realized that working in a counseling setting is closer to who I am. I love hearing people’s stories. In the meantime, I was recruited to work for a diabetes app with their Italian speaking clientele and stayed there for 4 years. I passed the Certified Diabetes Care & Education Specialist (CDCES) exam, and now work in diabetes / mindful eating / weight management at Sutter Health with Dr. Shilpa Jain.
philosophy
You are an individual and I want to empower you via Motivational Interviewing. Let's communicate via Skype, Google chat or Facetime.
philosophy
You are an individual and I want to empower you via Motivational Interviewing. Let's communicate via Skype, Google chat or Facetime.
You are interesting.
Science is interesting.
Food tastes good.
Now throw in more puzzle pieces which make you who you are, and there's a project that when given the right mix of listening, advising, asking and supporting, will yield you meeting an enriched version of yourself. My philosophy is that everyone has the capacity to improve, it’s a matter of finding those opportunities and reasons to change.
what's in a name
names are nice. apples and oranges have fiber, vitamins, minerals, water and can be easily carried in your backpack. My CD is called apples and oranges (though I don't post about it on this website) and I mention the fruit in a song I wrote called "every other day". also, apples have good texture and crunch and can be used in salads, and other creative culinary adventures.
what's in a name
names are nice. apples and oranges have fiber, vitamins, minerals, water and can be easily carried in your backpack. My CD is called apples and oranges (though I don't post about it on this website) and I mention the fruit in a song I wrote called "every other day". also, apples have good texture and crunch and can be used in salads, and other creative culinary adventures.
I've always kept an apple or an orange in my bag. I often carry an extra piece, so I can share.
From a health aspect, apples and oranges are high in fiber, have relatively good storage capacity, and span across different cultures and classes of people.
Drinking Fruit Juice vs Eating Whole Fruit
Apple juice and orange juice compared to apples and oranges are worlds apart nutritionally, and I enjoy educating on this topic.
After pressing loads of apples in a factory, on one side falls the juice and on the other side falls the pulp. Pulp contains : fiber, vitamins, minerals, glucose and water. Based on those components, you can understand that pulp is good for you. However, the pulp makes it challenging to produce a consistent product. It isn't valuable because it likely won't sell product. The pulp is thrown away. As mentioned before, the pulp has many health benefits.
back to the juice part (see previous paragraph). Fresh juice contains: vitamins, minerals, water, fructose, and glucose. To protect you from any possible bacteria, the manufacturer will boil or pasteurize the juice. Though this process does rid of possibly harmful bacteria, it also destroys the vitamins and other healthy components. So, now with the boiling and fiber tossing, the juice is not what it once was. By the time the juice gets to you, the majority of good is no longer accessible to your body. In fact, the company may now even choose to add vitamins which were created in a science lab. How backwards is that?
Recommendation ➞ Avoid Juice
Instead Carry ➞ Water + Apple or Orange
what is a dietitian
my coworkers all spell it dietician, which is incorrect. It can be confusing to understand what a dietitian does and how they compare to a nutritionist.
what is a dietitian
my coworkers all spell it dietician, which is incorrect. It can be confusing to understand what a dietitian does and how they compare to a nutritionist.
Dietitians are nutrition experts who blend biological sciences, culinary strategies, and behavior science to help a person improve their health.
All recommendations made by dietitians are evidence based.
The leading cause of death in the US is heart disease, which is strongly linked to diet. Diet is a modifiable risk factor. The majority of schools do not teach any nutrition. There is a tremendous gap and opportunity in this area.