Nualtra: Dietitian Cafe #RD2B

Today, we will be exploring an area of dietetics that I’ve seen taking the spotlight recently – and rightly so! Gut health. Today, I’m really excited to welcome registered dietitian Kaitlin Colucci. Kaitlin has become a prominent figure in the gut health world, and today we are lucky enough to be exploring her career as a leading gut health dietitian, to learn about her journey, advice and tips to those students interested in pursuing this speciality.Show noteshttps://www.kcl.ac.uk/short-courses/fodmap-introduction - FODMAP course

Today, we will be exploring a rather controversial topic amongst student dietitians. Reflection. Us students are all to familiar with the process, with many of us asking ourselves “why do we need to do this”. Today we are going to answer this by speaking with registered dietitian Pooja Dhir, who has a wealth of experience supporting student dietitians, and using reflection in her own career. I hope that in this episode we can reduce the stigma around reflection by highlighting its benefits, as well as sharing useful tips to make it a more accessible and productive way of learning.Pooja Dhir is a registered specialist dietitian who has worked as a team leader in the NHS, specialising in upper gastrointestinal and surgery. Pooja has worked in acute hospitals, both inpatients and outpatients, and has written articles for the leading medical nutrition CN magazine and is published in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. Pooja is currently a 2nd year PhD student looking at the self-perceived barriers in following the low-calorie diet for type 2 diabetes in South Asian populations. She is interested in research and how nutrition and diet impacts on health outcomes.Instagram: @dietitian_poojadhirLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pooja-dhir-b4aabb218/

In today’s episode we will be shining a light on international student dietitians in the UK. Many students experience the usual pressures and stresses of a degree, but international students also have a whole host of other challenges to contend with. I am delighted to be joined today by Courtney Rockett and Alfadhul Almubarak, who are international student dietitians studying at Leeds Beckett University. Courtney is 25 years old and from a town called Clonmel, in County Tipperary in Ireland. She has recently moved to Leeds to complete the MSc in Dietetics in Leeds Beckett University and is in the first year of the course. Before this course, she has completed a 4 year Nutrition and Health Science BSc (Level 8) in Cork Institute of Technology in Ireland. After finishing that in 2020, she worked in the Pharmaceutical industry for two years as a quality control Microbiology analyst, but although she did find that interesting she knew that she always wanted to do dietetics as it was her dream job! Courtney is passionate about helping as many people as possible improve their relationships with food and understand how important it is to fuel your body and adapt to a healthy lifestyle for both your mind and body!Alfadhul moved over from Bahrain to pursue a career in nutrition and Dietetics. After graduating with a first class honours in Nutrition and Health from Coventry, Alfadhul began studying for an MSc in Dietetics at Leeds Beckett University. Outside of day to day study, Alfadhul enjoys is a certified personal trainer and enjoys reading and researching cardiovascular disease and eating disorders. Today we will be talking about their decision to study in the UK, their experiences and listening to their advice to fellow international and UK students.Social mediaInstagram: @evolvefit20 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alfadhul-almubarak-699912135

In today’s episode, we will continue to explore the different dietetic specialities, and in light of the recent eating disorders awareness week from 27th February, we will be delving into the specialty of eating disorders. It is estimated by the UK’s eating disorder charity Beat that 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder of some form, which is a really shocking statistic, don’t you think? It seems only right that student dietitians understand more about eating disorders and the wonderful work that dietitians do in this space. To talk about all of this, we are joined by Beth Francois, a highly specialist eating disorders dietitian.Beth is a specialist eating disorder dietitian, currently working at a daycare service in London. She completed an MSc in Eating Disorders and Clinical Nutrition before qualifying as a registered dietitian from Kings College London at the beginning of 2020. She has worked within the field of eating disorders in various roles, including a dietetic assistant, across different settings including inpatient and outpatient treatment for the past 6 and a half years. Instagram@theeddietitian

Placement is a very exciting time with so much learning and personal growth. However, steep learning curves, moving to new environments, and financial pressures can leave students feeling overwhelmed and stressed. To make the most out of our time on placement, protecting our physical and mental health should be high on the priority list. Today, I am joined by Zunaira Awais, a third-year student dietitian who is a real advocate for student wellbeing on placement. We’ll hear about Zunaira’s own placement journey and discuss some tips and tricks to protecting your wellbeing on placement.Zunaira has openly shared her experience of poor mental health during clinical placement on her social media page and in a BDA blog post shared well-being tips for students on placement. Zunaira has re-done her B placement after taking a gap year where she worked as an SEN teaching assistant. She has an interest in the Dietetic speciality of mental-health and eating disorders. Alongside dietetics, Zunaira enjoys playing tennis, practising yoga and creating quirky recipes.Show notes:Mind student mental health club: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/tips-for-everyday-living/student-life/Zunaira’s BDA blog post: https://www.bda.uk.com/resource/dietetic-students-protecting-your-mental-health-on-placement.html Zunaira’s Instagram: @asian_dieteticsstudentZunaira’s twitter: @asian_dietetics

Today, we will be delving into the world of sports performance nutrition, which I know is a really interesting speciality to a lot of student dietitians. Whether it be men’s or women’s football, rugby, tennis, the Olympics, the Paralympics, or even the sport or exercise we do at home, sport is all around us. So, what is the role of dietitians in this space? Do we have one? Indeed, we do! I’m very pleased to introduce our guest Richard Allison, a registered dietitian, who has had a very exciting career in sports performance nutrition. Richard Allison is a consultant in Performance Nutrition and Clinical Dietetics at the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health. He is a registered Dietitian with the British Dietetic Association and member of the Sport and Exercise Nutritionist Register (SENr). He completed a master’s degree from Loughborough University in sports nutrition and a Doctorate in Philosophy (PhD) from Liverpool John Moore’s specialising in vitamin D and athlete health. Richard has substantial applied experience within the area of applied sports nutrition and clinical dietetics. He works with a variety of clientele, from elite athletes to serious amateurs, those seeking weight loss to those with nutrient deficiencies or sports injuries. Richard is also a specialist eating disorders dietitian working in the NHS and performance nutritionist for Tottenham Hotspur Women’s team.Previously, Richard has been Head of Performance Nutrition at Arsenal FC and between 2011 to 2017, he was the Senior Sports Dietitian at Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in Qatar, where he was responsible for implementing performance nutrition strategies across a variety of populations ranging from world class footballer players to youth academy athletes. Richard has worked with athletes from a range of sporting disciplines, including football, rugby, NBA, athletics, swimming, cycling and combat sports. Show notes:Institute of Sport Exercise and Health: https://www.iseh.co.uk/ Information on the SENr: https://www.bda.uk.com/senr-sport-and-exercise-nutrition-register.html Twitter: @sport_dietitianInstagram: @richardallisonnutrition

As digitalisation is on the rise, our future as student dietitians is looking to be more and more technology based. In this episode we will explore the telehealth field, including what it really is, the types of roles there are for dietitians, and the career opportunities that there may be for students once they graduate. To discuss all of this, we are joined today by Josie and Hannah, who are registered dietitians each with a variety of experience and who both currently work in industry leading telehealth organisations.Hannah has been in the field of nutrition & health for around 14 years, first qualifying as a Public Health Nutritionist, before training as a Registered Dietitian as a post-graduate. Her career has been varied, but always with the practice of behaviour change at its core. With the last few years of her working life in digital health, she's been remotely working from the East Sussex countryside, specialising in population-level programmes to empower individuals living with chronic conditions to live their lives well and find what health means to them. In her spare time, she is a certified yoga teacher and a (new) CrossFit fanatic; because the yin & yang keeps her balanced. Josie is a senior dietitian working at a health tech company called Simple in London. Her role is varied, from supporting the wider team such as marketing, customer support, content and product development with health and nutrition queries to offering solutions to business issues using nutritional science. In her spare time, she carries out freelance work as a specialist dietitian at The Gut Health Clinic where she supports clients with a small range of concerns from gut health to disordered eating. Prior to this she has worked as a specialist in gastroenterology, weight management and bariatric surgery at various hospitals in London and surrounding areas; such as UCLH and Guy's and St Thomas'. Show NotesJosie – https://www.thedietitianmethod.comInstagram @thedietitianmethodTikTok The Dietitian MethodHannahLinkedin: Hannah Pearman

Mature students form a significant part of the student dietitian community and dietetics is often a career that people decide to switch to mid-way through their working life. Today we wish to shine a spotlight on mature students, to highlight the value they bring to the profession as well as the unique challenges they face whilst studying. Today we are joined by Beca Lyne-Pirkis, a registered dietitian who began studying as a mature student over 3 years ago. Beca has had an exciting history working with food before dietetics, including being a contestant and semi-finalist in series four of the Great British Bake Off and publishing her recipe book “Feeding my Army” in 2020. I hope that in today’s episode, Beca can share experience and advice to help mature student dietitians feel supported and welcomed into the profession. For those listeners who aren’t mature students, we hope to give insight into what life looks like for a mature student dietitian and hear more of Beca’s exciting story.Show NotesInstagram: @becalynepirkisTwitter: @BecaLynePirkis

As most RD2B’s have now returned to university for another year of study and UCAS applications for Dietetics courses will start to fly in, we want to discuss some different journeys to becoming a dietitian. In this episode, we will be joined by two guests, Katie Avis and Zainab Jawed, who are dietetics students at university college London. Along with myself, we will be discussing our individual journeys, experiences and challenges as student dietitians, and share tips and advice for an enjoyable and rewarding RD2B journey.Katie Avis is a second year Dietetics MSc student at UCL. She previously studied Biomedical Sciences at undergraduate level and then completed an MSc in Clinical & Public Health Nutrition. Katie has also worked for the NHS in the Covid-19 and polio vaccination department and has a keen interest in paediatric dietetics. She is currently on a 7 week placement at HRS Communications and is loving every second. Katie has been involved in the creation of social media strategies, writing blog posts, as well as podcast planning. Outside of her studies she enjoy long walks (with an obligatory coffee and cake stop) and has recently taken up bouldering.Zainab Jawed is a 2nd-year MSc Dietetics student at UCL.She studied an undergraduate degree in Nutrition in London and then went on to work as a Nutritionist in a private corporate setting. Her favourite part of the job was interacting with people and helping them with any health and nutrition related problems. She quickly realised that she wanted to do all of this but in a clinical setting. So she began working as a dietetic assistant in the NHS, where she discovered her passion and motivation to study dietetics.Zainab is currently on a 7-weeks placement with HRS Communications as part of her MSc Dietetics degree. This placement is unique compared to my previous two placements which were within a traditional clinical setting. In her spare time, Zainab loves to get creative in the kitchen and develop my own delicious recipes!Show NotesZainab:Twitter: @zainabs263LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zainab-jawed-249700149Katie:Twitter: @KatieAvis4Instagram: @e.k.nutritionLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/katie-avis-rd2b-7a385a156

In the first episode of season 2, Neve meets with Anita Beckwith.Anita leads the Specialist Diabetes Dietetic and DAFNE services at King’s College Hospital, London.In both her NHS role and private practice, Anita supports women and men with and without diabetes (type 1 and type 2) through their fertility, preconception and pregnancy journeys.Anita is a certified fertility and prenatal dietitian and is an Early Life Nutrition Alliance Advisory BoardMember (an internationally organisation which specialises in reproductive and prenatal nutrition) and contributes to the development of fertility and prenatal dietitians through education and mentoring through their fertility and pregnancy courses.Anita sits on both the BDA Diabetes and Maternal and Fertility Specialist Group (DSG and MNFSG) Committees, and is the dietetic representative of the iDEAL Diabetes Group and DAFNE Executive Board. Within her role at DSG Anita developed the Advanced Practitioner role and specialist qualities of a dietitian practicing within diabetes, particularly focusing on pre- and post-qualification dietetic training. This resulted in the inception and development of a Masters level Medicines Management course and post-registration Diabetes Dietetic MSc modules. Anita has led on the BDA Nutritional Management in Pregnancy Course since it’s inception in 2020.Main Interview Notes:Anita Beckwith’s socials:•Keep an eye out for Anita’s website launch: www.anitabeckwith.com•Instagram: @anitab_rd and @fertility.hormone.dietitian•Twitter: @anitab_rdWoman’s health strategy for England: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/womens-health-strategy-for-england/womens-health-strategy-for-england Info to go Notes:Meg’s recommendations: Who to follow•Anita Beckwith: @fertility.hormone.dietitian•Ro Huntriss: @fertility.dietitian.uk•Laura Clark: @menopause.dietitian •Dr Hazel Wallace: @thefoodmedic •Dr Anita Mitra: @gynaegeek•Claire Pettitt: @cp_nutritionrd Other resources/CPD opportunities:•The Big Dietetic Debate: Maternal Health with Pam Finlay & Ro Huntriss: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-big-dietetic-debate-maternal-health-with-pam-finlay/id1499104683?i=1000517123696 •MyNutriWeb webinar - PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) Nutrition and Lifestyle, Claire Pettitt: https://mynutriweb.com/pcos-polycystic-ovary-syndrome-nutrition-and-lifestyle/•BAPEN malnutrition awareness week: UK Malnutrition Awareness Week (bapen.org.uk) To get in touch about your top tips for other students or to share any upcoming CPD opportunities please email [email protected]