What Should I Do to Be a Nutritionist?

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Making Sense of All Those Confusing Degrees and Credentials

Every month we get letters from members asking how to become a nutritionist. Many of our members want to learn more about Dr Price’s dietary laws in an academic setting while also gaining the credentials needed to be licensed and work professionally. We wish there were a simple answer.

First, let’s look at the term “nutritionist.”

A nutritionist can be anything from a PhD-trained professional to the friendly multi-level marketer down the street who is all too eager to testify to the healing powers of his or her brand’s (and only that brand’s) vitamins, shakes and energy bars. Assistants in the supplement sections at Whole Foods and other marketplaces probably call themselves nutritionists. So might your Uncle Harry if he both eats and has read a few diet books. “Nutritionists” may have advanced degrees or no degrees. They can be licensed professionals, gifted educators, idiot proseltyzers or opinionated people.

The term “nutritionist” is so vague, it is meaningless. To improve their credibility, some professionals have banded together to form organizations in which members are required to attain certain levels of expertise or competence, as determined by completing coursework, passing examinations, obtaining continuing education credits and otherwise proving their mettle. Indeed, nutritionists today can earn all sorts of certifications, some of which are respected, some less so or not at all. (We’ll discuss some of these later in this article.) Those who earn the right—or just pay the right fees—may be the only ones allowed to put certain trademarked initials after their name, but there’s nothing to stop people from calling themselves “nutritionists.”

The only thing that’s certain is that “nutritionists” cannot call themselves “dietitians.” The terms are not interchangeable.

DIETITIANS

The term “dietitian” (sometimes spelled dietician) can be used only by someone who has completed coursework approved by the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Registered Dietitians have jumped through additional ADA hoops, including completion of an approved internship and passing of the ADA’s CDR (Commission on Dietetic Registration) examination. Thereafter, they must keep up continuing education requirements and remain paid up members in good standing.

RDs can be licensed in any state that has licensing requirements, which is close to fifty at this writing. Because the ADA has a hammerlock on licensing in many of these states, it’s a valuable credential to have. Registered Dietitians can open a private practice or work for doctors, hospitals, schools, nursing homes and other institutions. Most such employers will only consider RDs for these positions.

The initials RD after the name confers credibility with mainstream publishers, and being an RD will also increase the likelihood of being quoted as an expert in the mainstream media. Subscribers to the ProfNet service—a networking service that matches reporters and producers with “experts” in many different fields—notice that many of the inquiries request a response only from RDs or MDs.

 

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