Let's try nutrition
without the drama.
I don't eat perfectly and I don't tell my clients to either, Let's be honest, "perfect" eating doesn't exist. There's no one "perfect" way to eat, because what you need and what I need is totally different, and that doesn't even start to consider your food preferences, culture, allergies, food budget or medical requirements.
I am currently based in Perth, but I work entirely online so you don't need to worry about allowing time for freeway traffic or finding a car park.
First things first. I wasn't always going to be a dietitian. In fact I actually have an architecture degree under my belt, and didn't consider nutrition and dietetics as a career until I realised I wasn't very good at following building codes while creating my designs - turns out this is kind of a big deal?!
At that time I also spent a significant amount of time awake, and needed a whole lot of caffeine to keep me going. I knew this wasn't sustainable for me, so made the decision after 4 years of study (and one graduation) to start studying nutrition.
Hi, hello!
I'm Gina, and I'm so glad you're here with me now.
I'M AN ACCREDITED PRACTISING DIETITIAN, BUT I AM ALSO HUMAN.
- Private practice
- Western Australia's specialist paediatric hospital
- Privately in infant and toddler nutrition (still current)
- Large secondary hospital, located in Perth's northern suburbs
My experience:
When I started my Bachelor of Science degree, I swapped my all black architecture uniform for active wear. The post-digital design comedown was hard. I definitely went through some interesting phases. Some of these my family and friends will remember... but not for the right reasons!
There was the time I got really into baking, well actually it wasn't really baking because I only made raw treats. Ask my sister about the enormous raw pumpkin pie I once made my whole family try. I'm not surprised that didn't go down well. Or maybe ask my mum about the time I did a juice cleanse. In hindsight I'm proud to say that I didn't even last 24-hrs. Mum's spaghetti and meatballs were too good to pass up. One of my final acts of horror was starting a recipe blog and posting a recipe, which was essentially oats, mashed banana, some choc chips and maybe an egg (?) mixed together and baked. That's not even the worst part. The worst part is that I called them guilt-free cookies. Side note: I'd like to formally apologise to anyone who tried that recipe. Shame on me. Those were not cookies. They were servings of diet culture.
So why am I telling you this?
It took me years into my undergraduate nutrition degree to understand that a healthy diet wasn't about - you guessed it: raw treats, juice cleanses and missing out on the foods you love. Nutrition does not need to be complicated, but we're obsessed with making it complicated. I promise you that a healthy diet is not about single foods or nutrients. It never was and never will be. Most people can appreciate that eating one salad won't make a big difference to your healthy, but why is it hard to accept that eating [insert name of that food you've felt bad for eating] won't conversely make us unhealthy? The answer is simple, it's just two words, but is also incredibly complex. Diet culture. It got me too. And I even had to become an Accredited Practising Dietitian to truly understand it.
I am beyond grateful that my life ended up here and I saw the light, even if I had to eat humble (raw pumpkin) pie to do so. I love food, and love talking to people about food. I love helping people realise that you don't have to cut out your fav foods, and often it only takes a few small tweaks to make a huge impact.
My specialties include:
Pregnancy and
preconception
Reproductive health
conditions
Food allergies
and intolerances
Paediatric nutrition and growth
Great question
Okay, but why do I specialise in these areas?
There are lots of fields I find fascinating in the world of medical nutrition therapy, but I do believe that preventative healthcare is key. I figured that if I could work with families with babies and young children, this could help set them up for a life with better health outcomes. Then I realised that what we do before conception and birth is also a huge part of the picture. I'll write a blog post on the importance of the first 1000 days, because that really is where my fascination with preconception and pregnancy nutrition really bloomed.
When I worked in private practice I was referred patients with reproductive conditions, like PCOS, who were told by other healthcare professionals to see a dietitian to lose weight to improve their symptoms. Unfortunately some of them were already battling with their body image and disordered eating habits. The world is a cruel place. These patients made me look beyond the very basic recommendations and research ways to support their nutrition concerns without focusing on body size and weight. Spoiler alert: It is possible to improve health outcomes without losing weight. People living with conditions like PCOS, endometriosis and thyroid disorders are often recommended restrictive diets that might not actually be serving them individually. Please get a second opinion if someone is telling you that you cannot eat certain foods or entire food groups.
Guidelines for preconception, pregnancy and postpartum are riddled with weight stigma and anti-fat bias. If you are looking for a weight-neutral approach to nutrition during preconception, pregnancy and postpartum- here I am! My goal is to support you during this time, without focussing on your body size. Every body is unique and deserves respect.
On a slightly separate note I find the world of food allergies and intolerances, particularly in childhood, fascinating. Did you know Australia is considered the allergy capital of the world? It seems unbelievable, but 1 in 10 babies have a food allergy, and this number only grows when we also include eczema, asthma and allergic rhinitis. I can work with you to assess whether a child with food allergies is meeting nutrition recommendations and if you are breast feeding, we can work together to liberalise your diet and make sure you are getting enough of what you need too.
I also specialise in childhood nutrition and the Division of Responsibility (DoR). The DoR is an evidence-based approach to feeding children (from infants to adolescents). This approach is a huge part of my other work with Dr Kyla and the Mealtimes team. I acknowledge that the Division of Responsibility is different to how many of us were brought up (myself included), but we know that restricting foods or pressuring children to eat can cause harm. Using the Division of Responsibility approach to feeding, families can learn to trust their child to eat as they need to support their own growth trajectory. This can feel uncomfortable at times, but often it's our own thoughts about food or our bodies that need to be challenged.
If you've got more questions about how we can work together, get in touch.
Are you a brand looking for recipe development? Or are you looking for a dietitian's take on a topic?
Check out my blog for simple recipes and evidence-based nutrition articles.
Do you want some support navigating your nutrition? I'd love to help you achieve your goals.
Come and hang out with me on Instagram!