FAQs

What is Nutritional Therapy?

Nutritional therapy is the application of nutritional science to promote optimal health, peak performance and self-care. Nutritional therapy practitioners use a wide range of tools to assess and identify potential nutritional imbalances and understand how these may contribute to an individual’s symptoms and health concerns. This approach allows them to work with individuals to address nutritional balance and help support the body towards maintaining health.

Nutritional therapy is recognised as a complementary medicine. It is relevant both for individuals looking to enhance their health and well-being and for those with chronic conditions wishing to work with or ‘consult’ a nutritional therapist in collaboration with other suitably qualified healthcare professionals. Practitioners consider each individual to be unique and recommend personalised nutrition and lifestyle programmes rather than a ‘one size fits all’ approach.

Please note that Nutritional Therapy is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease, including cancer, and does not replace the services provided by medical experts. If you have any concerns about specific symptoms, please always also seek the advice of your GP for further investigation. As a member of the British Association for Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine, I will work alongside your Oncology Team or GP to support your well-being.

Can Nutritional Therapy replace medical cancer treatment?

No. Nutritional Therapy is intended to support your body before, during and after treatment, but should never be offered as an alternative to traditional cancer treatment. Any recommendations are never intended as a replacement for medical advice.

How can Nutritional Therapy support my cancer treatment?

My approach is to support the entire person rather than solely focus on the tumour. I consider gut function and microbiome balance, hormone balance, immune function, underlying causes of inflammation, detoxification burden, and any factors that could be impairing your methylation capacity, to name just a few. This will always be done in consideration of your medical treatment plan, which is there to treat your cancer. My health plans are designed to support your whole body through every stage, whether that is to build resilience before surgery, support the management of common symptoms during treatment, gently regain your health during recovery or if you want to work toward longer-term health goals.

What to expect during a consultation?

Before our first consultation, you’ll be asked to complete a detailed health questionnaire and food diary. I will also ask you to provide details of your medical treatment plan, copies of relevant oncology letters and any recent blood test results through a secure portal. These need to arrive at least 3 days before our appointment so that I have sufficient time to review them.

Using this information and what we discussed in our consultation, I will look to identify potential imbalances that may be contributing to your most pressing health concerns and/or symptoms. I will develop a personalised health optimisation plan that is achievable and tailored to your circumstances. During subsequent consultations, we will continue to build on this, but it is a fluid process that allows us to manage any new symptoms or concerns that may arise as your medical treatment continues.

Can I book additional appointments?

Yes, I offer ongoing support for as long as you want. Current clients can book an additional 45-minute consultation for £99.

Do you offer in-person consultations?

All of my consultations are online or by phone, allowing you to speak with me from the comfort of your own home without the need to travel to a clinic.

What are functional tests & are they included in your packages?

Functional tests are intended to assess underlying imbalances that may be contributing towards your current health concerns and/or symptoms. Examples of functional tests include hormone panels, comprehensive blood test, SIBO breath and/or stool tests to examine hormone balance, digestive function, gut inflammation and the current health of your microbiome. Unless expressly stated, such as with the nutrigenomic testing package, functional tests are not included within your package and will incur an additional cost. If I recommend a functional test, the price, potential benefit, any limitations of the test and turnaround time will be discussed with you so you can make an informed decision about whether you wish to proceed.

Will you recommend supplements?

I don’t support restrictive eating patterns and believe that the more diversity we can incorporate into our diet, especially plant-based foods, the better for our overall well-being. As my approach is food-first I only recommend supplements where it isn’t possible to achieve an optimal intake from your diet alone. Any supplement recommendation will be carefully considered and checked for potential interactions with your current treatment plan. Any supplement recommendations will be targeted to support your overall well-being or support the management of specific side effects from your treatment. I have an account with Natural Dispensary which gives me access to a discount that I share with my clients. When you fill in your pre-consultation questionnaire you must advise me of all supplements you are currently taking so that I can check that they are not undermining the efficacy of the treatment your oncology team have in place.

What is Nutrigenomic testing?

Nutrigenomics is the study of interactions between genes, nutrients and health. A nutrigenomics test examines DNA from a simple, non-invasive, mouth swab to identify genetic variants that may impact your health and can be supported by nutritional and lifestyle changes offering a truly personalised, and proactive approach to health. Please note that the company I use does not test for disease, only genetic variants that can be modified through nutrition and lifestyle

What Nutrigenomic panels do you offer?

The tests I offer are from a UK-based company called Lifecode G^X. I offer a range of DNA panels which help my clients understand their genetics around metabolic health, methylation and detoxification, histamine intolerance and neurotransmitter, sex hormone and thyroid hormone balance. If you would like to know more about what each report offers and whether it is relevant to your symptoms then please contact me to discuss this further or click here for a description of each panel.

How do I take the test?

Full details will be included in the package sent out by Lifecode G^X. The package includes a swab that you rub on the inside of your mouth to collect loose cells which can then be sequenced for your DNA.

Can I order additional DNA panels?

Yes, if you feel that you would like more than one panel then this can be discussed during our initial consultation. The cost of the DNA swab and sequencing is included and you will be able to order additional tests up to 6 months after this, however, if you wish to purchase further reports after this point then you will need to pay again for the DNA sequencing

Can I order Nutrigenomic testing without a cancer nutrition package?

Yes. Whilst my main focus is on supporting cancer clients I also offer stand-alone Nutrigenomic packages for individuals looking to understand how their genetics could be influencing their health. Please contact me if this is something you are interested in and we can discuss a bespoke package for you.

Will I need to retest at a later date?

No, this is a one-off cost. Your genetic code doesn’t change throughout your lifetime, it is their function that can be modified through nutrition and lifestyle.

What is your cancellation policy?

I understand that you may have days when you are not feeling great but I would ask that you give me 24 hours notice to cancel and rearrange your consultation. Any cancellations with less than 24 hours’ notice, or if you don’t turn up to your appointment, will be charged in full.

Do you work with children?

I’m afraid not, I only work with adults aged 18 years and over.