American Dietetic Association is a nutritional disgrace

Sunday, October 31, 2010 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer
Tags: American Dietetic Association, nutrition, health news

(NaturalNews) The Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) has challenged a decision to recognize the American Dietetic Association (ADA) as Michigan's only certifying agency for dietitians or nutritionists.

"In order to adequately protect the profession of nutritional therapy, certifying organizations that specialize in nutrition (and not simply dietetics) must be recognized," the ANH writes in a press release.

The Michigan Board of Dietetic and Nutrition recently voted to accept the Commission on Dietetic Registration, the ADA's credentialing arm, as the only certifying agency in the state. The ANH has requested that the board revisit this decision and accept certification from other agencies such as the Certification Board for Nutrition Specialists (CBNS) or the American Clinical Board of Nutrition.

According to the ANH press release, dietitians and nutritionists are trained in different fields and specialties, with different underlying philosophies. Whereas nutritionists are trained to understand the impact of diet on different bodily systems and to use an integrative approach to prevent and treat disease, the ANH says, dietitians are trained in food service management for institutional settings.

"Hospital food by law is controlled by dieticians, and almost everyone recognizes that the poor food in hospitals is a medical disgrace," the ANH writes.

In addition, the ANH notes, the ADA's credentialing standards are significantly laxer than those of many other agencies. For example, the CBNS requires 100 more hours of supervised experience than the ADA, in addition to an advanced nutrition degree an a certifying exam.

"Michigan may not even realize that it is also barring the best-educated, most highly qualified professionals from providing nutritional therapy to Michigan residents," the ANH writes.

The ANH acknowledges that there is overlap between the two professions and that some dietitians can provide individualized counseling as well.

"There are many different dietary and nutritional therapies to choose from, which is why freedom of consumer choice is absolutely essential in this field," it writes.

Sources for this story include: http://www.anh-usa.org/playing-monopoly-with....