| Degree Required | Bachelor's degree |
| Education Field of Study | Nutrition or dietetics |
| Key Responsibilities | Assess eating habits, promote exercise and stress reduction, address health issues, recommend foods and nutritional supplements, formulate diet plans |
| Licensure/Certification | Requirements vary by state |
| Job Growth (2020-2030) | 11%* (for dietitians & nutritionists) |
| Average Salary (2020) | $64,150* (for dietitians & nutritionists) |
Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
What Is a Naturopathic Nutritionist?
A naturopathic nutritionist takes a holistic view of health and wellness through nutritional balance from whole foods and nutritional supplements. For a naturopathic nutritionist, food is medicine, and nutrients from food affect physical energy and well-being. As a naturopathic nutritionist, you would suggest foods and nutritional supplements that address the health problems of your clients and help them maintain physiological balance.
Naturopathic nutritionists consider the personal and social stressors in their clients' lifestyle as well as physiological and biochemical issues. Assessment of eating habits that hinder wellness and concern for exercise and stress reduction may be part of your approach to consulting clients. Medical concerns include high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart conditions. Aging and genetic predispositions would be a consideration.
How Can I Become a Naturopathic Nutritionist?
To become a naturopathic nutritionist, you need to obtain a Bachelor of Science with an emphasis on nutrition. Sub-specialties include exercise science and culinary arts. Master and doctoral degrees are available but not required unless you plan to become an educator.
You may wish to become a certified clinical nutritionist through the Clinical Nutrition Certification Board. Before taking the examination, your college degree must satisfy curriculum requirements in human physiology and nutrition. To become licensed or certified, check with your state medical board.
What Kind of Career Could I Have?
Work opportunities for a naturopathic nutritionist are quite varied. You could become a nutritional consultant in private practice or as part of a group practice serving individual clients. Similar opportunities include working for sports teams, health clubs or gyms, providing advice on nutritional support for athletic activity. In the nutritional supplements industry, you could become a nutritional product developer or a buyer. You could also find employment as a writer, working for publications that specialize in nutrition, or as an educator in colleges or universities.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the mean annual income for a nutritionist serving medical and surgical hospitals was $64,760 during 2020 (www.bls.gov). Employment in the nursing care facilities carried an annual mean wage of $60,430, while nutritionists working at outpatient care centers earned an average of $70,650.
If you want a job working with individuals to improve their health, you could also become a community health educator or a public health worker. In this job, you would organize campaigns to increase public awareness of key public health issues, including nutrition, and provide advice for community members about healthy lifestyle choices and available medical resources. To be a health educator, you usually need to hold a bachelor's degree. Another option within the field of holistic health is a job as job as a massage therapist, where you could utilize a variety of modalities to promote wellness, alleviate pain, reduce stress and heal injuries. Massage therapists need to complete a postsecondary certificate program in order to practice.
