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Prevention and control of disease from daily dietary habits becomes more popular and Dietitian is the perfect role to learn from. Dieticians can provide us with nutrition knowledge and also provide direction for changing eating habits and behaviors.
Learn more about dietitian specialties and fees, contact information, and insurance coverage.
Dietitians must require a bachelor's, master's, postgraduate diploma or doctorate degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from the following 4 associations accredited universities, and have passed formal supervised clinical practice training in a hospital, communities, and dietary management associations.
A Dietitian is different from a Nutritionist. A Dietitian is a person who must have undergone clinical nutrition training at a designated university and have practiced in a hospital or community center for more than 6 months.
A nutritionist can be anyone who is majoring in food and nutrition with Bachelor's degree.
However, there is no law in Hong Kong to regulate people who packaged themselves as a dietitian and use it for profit.
Only successfully registered dietitians with the Hong Kong Dietitian Association(HKDA), the Hong Kong Nutrition Association(HKNA), and/or the Hong Kong Association of Practising Dietitians have clinical experience and are qualified to provide individual nutritional therapy.
Note: Some non-qualified nutritionists will package themselves as "nutrition expert", "approved nutritionists", etc. It is recommended that you check the professional qualifications of nutritionists when choosing onepersonalized.
Dietitian | Nutritionists |
✔Provide nutrition consultation services for healthy people and people with diseases ✔Design Menu ✔Nutritional Diagnosis ✔When necessary, they can advise the audience to take supplements ✔Can provide help in the catering industry ✔To promote public health ✔Conduct academic research
| ❌Cannot provide personalised nutrition services ✔Can provide help in the catering industry ✔To promote public health ✔Conduct academic research |
In summary, a dietitian can cover/replace the work of a nutritionist, but a nutritionist cannot directly replace a dietitian.
Mainly provides clinical nutrition services in hospitals, providing patients with a nutritionally balanced diet and nutritional therapy. They can assess the patient's condition, and monitor and implement nutritional therapy.
Works in the Department of Health, Community Health Centers, Rehabilitation Centers, Schools, and Non-Profit Organizations. Promote nutrition information and disease prevention to the public; provide dietary counseling and follow-up plans on chronic diseases in the community.
Works in private medical centers/clinics. Provide nutritional services to institutions and individuals.
Provide nutritional information in large catering institutions (fast food restaurants, student lunch box suppliers, airline meals) to manage and coordinate the operation and hygiene issues, They can design meal plans as well.
Works in sports academies and fitness centers to provide individual or group nutritional counseling for different exercise types and intensities to help improve sports performance.
When your doctor suggests you reach out to Dietitian. Other common signs and conditions that prompt you to see a dietitian include:
You can find dietitians in public or private hospitals, private clinics, community centers, and non-profit organizations.
In the public sector, there are 23 public hospitals in Hong Kong that provide nutrition consultation services.
There are 4 community service centers in Hong Kong that provide nutrition consultation services.
Centers
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