Holistic Healing

Nutritional Therapy

Nutritional Therapy in Kendal & Carlisle, Cumbria and Clitheroe, Lancashire with Liz McWatt, BANT Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioner








The wise man should consider that health is the greatest of human blessings. Let food be your medicine." - Hippocrates

What is Nutritional Therapy?

Nutritional Therapy is more than ’healthy eating’ or impersonal ‘nutritional advice’. A Nutritional Therapy programme is specifically designed to meet your body's needs. It will support your body's natural ability to maintain health by supplying the tools – the nutrients that you need to optimize your healthy emotional, mental and physical function. Based upon nutritional, lifestyle-based and related health sciences, Nutritional Therapy provides an individual-centred approach to healthcare that utilizes assessment and intervention in order to promote a sense of optimal health, vitality and well-being.

A sense of wellbeing and good health are a positive consequence of balance in the body, known as metabolic homeostasis, where we are able to maintain a state of inner balance in our production of energy to sustain body function, structure and information. Supporting homeostasis is the key focus of Nutritional Therapy, which in turn recognizes that diet and lifestyle are among the factors that most profoundly influence it. Homeostasis is maintained by the constant adjustment of biochemical and physiological pathways and is influenced by both internal and external factors, including the foods you eat.

What can you expect from a Nutritional Therapy consultation with Liz?

Once you book an appointment, I will send you a comprehensive questionnaire. At your first consultation I will take a detailed history which will include an overview of your general health, family history, dietary habits, digestive function and lifestyle factors. Your assessment may include the use of appropriate tests and observations and physical signs. I may recommend laboratory tests if I feel they would be helpful.

Following your first consultation I will then devise a dietary and lifestyle plan suitable for your own individual circumstances based upon the information you have given me. This may include dietary adjustments, suggestions for dietary support, lifestyle changes and food or botanical supplement recommendations.
It is important that your Family Doctor is fully aware of any health problems you may have; if you have not already consulted him / her with regards to any health concerns you may have, please do so prior to your first appointment.

What are the benefits of Nutritional Therapy?


Nutrition and lifestyle approaches to healthcare have been repeatedly shown to support the health of all the major systems of the body (skeletal, muscular, nervous, respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, excretory, endocrine, immune, reproductive and integumentary [skin, hair, nails]). Typical priorities in Nutritional Therapy consultations are support to achieve optimum energy levels, healthy blood sugar balance, emotional and psychological wellbeing, optimum gastrointestinal health and tolerance to a broad range of food groups.

In summary, eating a healthy balanced diet that is specifically designed for your needs can lead to:
• Increased vitality
• Feelings of emotional and psychological well-being
• Optimal energy levels
• Improved sleep quality
• Healthy blood sugar balance
• Optimised Digestive function so you get the full benefit from the foods you are eating
• Promote a tolerance to a wide range of foods
• Enhanced Fertility
• Robust immune system
• Supporting detoxification pathways and promoting an efficient eliminatory system
• A Healthy endocrine system and hormonal balance
• A skin that glows with health and vitality

The use of food and lifestyle changes is recognized as a principle component of achieving and maintaining optimal levels of health. Research is increasingly recognizing that foods have nutritive value beyond that related to caloric or macronutrient quantity and quality.
I will work with you to achieve the best food selection for your own personal needs.

Food supplementation is sometimes challenged by people who recognize that a balanced diet should meet everyone’s unique biochemical needs. Whilst Nutritional Therapists are trained primarily in the application of food as a health modifier, they also recognize, as do more and more scientists, that there are distinct benefits to the use of specific food supplements and nutritional substrates in conjunction with both a healthy and well balanced diet and a specific lifestyle programme.

Severe deficiency of the vitamins and minerals required for life is relatively uncommon in developed nations, but modest deficiency is very common and is often either not recognized or not taken seriously. New evidence, however, may change this thinking. Particularly significant is recent research that suggests moderate selenium and vitamin K deficiency lead to accumulated damage over time as a result of vitamin and mineral loss, leading to age-related diseases.

How does Nutritional Therapy help to promote optimal health, vitality and well-being?

Optimized Digestive Health - so you get the full benefit from the foods you are eating
Some say “you are what you eat”, but I would also add “you are what you digest”. Enjoying gastrointestinal health is vital to one’s quality of life. Nutrition and its components, including food concentrates and bacteria, are a key component of healthy functional gastrointestinal wellbeing. As a cornerstone for a successful nutritional therapy programme, I believe supporting digestive health is a vital key in optimizing the ability of each individual to gain the maximum benefit from the food they eat. Over the last 15 years, I have worked with many clients to provide them with expert advice and recommendation in supporting optimal gastrointestinal health.

Healthy Endocrine Support - to promote feelings of wellbeing and support your ability to adapt to the pressures of a modern lifestyle.
Our endocrine system, when operating in perfect health, ensures we enjoy optimal energy levels, a healthy and regulated blood sugar balance, emotional and psychological wellbeing, a state of optimal gastrointestinal health and tolerance to a wide range of foods and different food groups.
Nutritional therapy looks to foods, food concentrates and biological agents (probiotics) to assist and support your body’s normal state of optimal endocrine (hormonal) homeostasis. This can be a difficult area to manage alone, without adequate guidance. Nutritional therapists use a variety of investigations to provide you with a personalized nutrition and lifestyle plan, to guide and support you in your discovery and maintenance of your personal health and wellbeing.
This includes specific and personalized advice using investigations and careful history taking to support / improve your energy levels, concentration, weight and overall health.

Who can benefit from Nutritional Therapy?

Everyone can benefit from eating good wholesome food. Nutritional Therapy analyses each individual's situation and requirements, and treats holistically, aiming to identify the root of problems and using food to treat the person as a whole. Nutritional Therapy is effective for any age, sex, lifestyle and health status.

“To Eat is a necessity, to eat intelligently is an art” La Rochefoucauld

Liz has more than 15 years experience in supporting people's health as a nutritional therapist and helping them to regain a renewed sense of health, vitality and emotional balance If you are unsure whether Nutritional Therapy may be able to help you, please contact Liz for further information

How Easy is it to Eat a Healthy Diet?
Eating a healthy well balanced diet needn’t be hard work. With a little bit of knowledge about which foods are good for you, the health benefits of eating delicious nutritious foods and how to cook them, revitalising your diet along with your health and vitality could be just a step away.
Once you know what to eat all it takes is a little preparation, some help from some good recipe books – please see recommended recipe books at foot of page.
For a good on-line source of recipes try Recipe Zaar

Suppliers of Organic Foods Locally
Ideally we should eat as much food as possible from organic sources. Foods that are grown or reared organically avoid the use of toxic pesticides which may have an impact on our health. In addition they usually contain far higher levels of nutrients than foods from non-organic origin.

Cumbria Organics
Howbarrow Organic Farm, Cartmel
Growing Well Ltd
Low Sizergh Farm
Low Stanger Farm & Market Garden

Suppliers of Free From Foods
Most supermarkets now supply a good range of free from products, so it is easy to include these with your regular shop. In addition you may find the following links a useful resource.

www.glutenfree-foods.co.uk
www.wheatanddairyfree.com
www.trufree.co.uk
Artisan Bread Organic

Liz McWatt
RGN.DNMed.MLCHom.DA.DTM
BANT Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioner
Registered Homeopath (MARH)
Registered Aromatherapist (MIFA)
Flower Essence Practitioner

Tel: 01539 728188
liz@holistic-healing.org.uk