THE TWISTED TALE OF DIETITING

Get a fever and we first try home remedies, then over the counter drugs and then when all hopes are exhausted, we go to the obvious choice – Doctors! At least, meeting a doctor happens in the third try. But a dietitian? It’s a whole new twisted tale.

We decide to pick up a diet for all the wrong reasons like “need to lose weight for cousin’s wedding”, “beach vacation needs a beach bod” and the likes. In the desperate look out for ways to achieve this feat, neighbors and friends come to the rescue. Neighbor forwards a Whatsapp message which says “Miraculously lose the extra pounds without dieting”. After 5 days of gulping down the repulsive tasting concoctions and merrily eating and drinking, the scale doesn’t budge.

What next? GOOGLE the savior! Google being the know-it-all, splurges out all the fancy diets. DAY 1 – Excitement and dedication, DAY 2 – Dedication, DAY 3 – Dedicated but Sulking, DAY 4 – Sulking and Craving, DAY 5 – “One slice Pizza wouldn’t hurt!”, DAY 6 – “Guilt and guilt Eating”, DAY 7 – “End of Diet”

Probably what’s missing in the plan is a Motivator. Finally! Search for a Dietitian begins. But does the story end there? It doesn’t!

Finding a qualified dietitian has become the next problem. There are many people with a short course degree, some with no formal education on Nutrition and some who became experts just by losing weight themselves, posing to be dietitians. These-so-called dietitians and lifestyle brands promise 10 kgs weight loss in 2 weeks, put their clients on crash diets, juice diets, meal replacers, fat burners and protein shake only to show instant results. But the long-term result? Gaining back double the weight you lost is not what you are paying for.

This is the story of many of us. Not finding the right help at the right time.

People find their way to the doctor eventually because it’s a matter of health. But to a dietitian, most people get lost mid-way and do not make it to a qualified dietitian who could actually help them.

What to expect from a qualified dietitian and how to find one? Watch out for the upcoming blogs!