Nutritional therapy
- See also: Dietetics
In the U.K. classification of complementary medicine, nutritional therapy is the use of nutritional methods to address and prevent disease. It is considered a complementary technique used to complement conventional medicine and do not purport to embrace diagnostic skills[1]
It uses diets and nutritional supplements to address allergies and chronic digestive problems. The difference between nutritional medicine and dietetics is that nutritional therapists work independently in accordance with naturopathic principles and focus on disorders which they believe can be attributed to nutritional deficiency, food intolerance or toxic overload. They believe these three factors are involved in a wide range of health problems. Nutritional therapists often use exclusion diets and herbal remedies to tackle patients' problems.
Dieticians usually work under medical supervision, using diets to encourage healthy eating and tackle a narrower range of diseases.
References
- ↑ Select Committee appointed to consider Science and Technology, U.K. Parliament (21 November 2000), Chapter 2: Disciplines examined, Definitions of the Various CAM Therapies, Complementary and Alternative Medicine