No. We use software called Cliniko to conduct our video consultations and due to the high volume of clients that we service every week we are not able to use Zoom or any other software to conduct your consultation.

FAQs Archive - The Healthy Eating Clinic

Q: How can you be of help to us with a weight-neutral approach?

Your dietitian will work with you and your child to increase intakes of nutrient dense foods, and implement mindful eating practices. Age-appropriate education is provided to your child so that they are able to understand the importance of healthy eating and engage with the process. We are able to assist you and your family with overcoming barriers such as fussy eating and strong food preferences, all while maintaining a healthy relationship with foods.

Q: Why would my GP refer us to your clinic if you do not do weight loss?

There are many medical conditions where certain foods and their pattern of intake influence health, which is completely independent of a child’s weight. A dietitian can help build the required pattern of intake to support your child’s health condition, and it would be for this reason that your GP has referred you. Dietitians are the university-educated experts in nutrition. They use evidence-based practice to improve your child’s diet quality and ensure that their food intakes support optimal health, growth and development.

Q: How will a weight neutral approach help my child lose weight?

The weight neutral approach focuses on developing healthy habits and behaviours, and the goal is to move towards better food choices to support healthy growth and development. When a child has a healthy balanced diet they are able to achieve the weight that is right for their body. This can vary between each child, so aiming for a certain weight is never appropriate.

Q: Why won’t you help my child lose weight without the weight neutral approach?

Restrictive diet practices can have lifelong detrimental effects on children, and is linked to an increased risk of developing an eating disorder. We passionately believe in supporting a healthy relationship with food for all ages, and for this reason will not use restrictive diet practices to achieve weight loss in children.

Q: How will our clinic provide a weight-neutral approach?

The Healthy Eating Clinic provides nutrition consultation and counselling within a weight neutral framework to ALL clients, regardless of their goals. Our aim is to work with clients to build their nutrition knowledge, understand how to translate that knowledge into their everyday life and build skills in making confident food choices, listening to their body, cooking, shopping, food prep, and more. We will help our clients build healthy habits into their life with realistic and sustainable nutrition advice that suits their lifestyle and food preferences. We do NOT to recommend the use of VLCDs, keto, fasting or other restrictive diets because we do not believe that they provide a long term, sustainable solution for people’s physical and mental health. We hope that individuals seeking weight loss specifically, come to our clinic for help and get the opportunity to be presented with this approach and how it can support their physical and mental health long term. We see weight loss as a potential side effect of focussing on healthy behaviour changes, rather than the end goal. We are aware that living in our weight-centric culture (i.e. a culture that puts a LOT of emphasis on weight and it's importance) means that many of our current and potential clients want to lose weight. No-one is shamed or judged for this, as we understand the pressure that is felt to be in a smaller/thinner/leaner body, especially for people in larger bodies. Our goal is to listen and understand where they're at and show them another approach, present the evidence for this approach and WHY we've chosen to practice in this way. At that point, they can choose if this is how they'd like to progress.

Q: What does weight-neutral mean for clients wanting weight loss?

If a client comes to us actively wanting to lose weight, this is how we would handle it: We would get a very thorough history of their diet, lifestyle and health. We want a holistic view of both their physical and mental health. If weight loss is their goal, we want to understand WHY it is, so we can fully understand their motivations behind it. It is of a huge importance to us that clients feel HEARD and UNDERSTOOD. After this, we would then get their consent to work with them using a weight neutral framework and focus their efforts directly on their health. Most people want to lose weight for health reasons and it can be very refreshing for these clients, especially if weight loss has been difficult to achieve, to realise that the biggest predictors of long term health is health behaviours, independent of body weight

Q: Why do we take a weight-neutral approach?

Focusing on weight loss is detrimental to an individuals physical and mental health. Weight loss diets increase the risks of developing an eating disorder, a poor relationship with food and poor self-esteem. A desire for weight loss can lead to unhealthy, restrictive patterns of eating that actually impair long term health, not promote it. A person's weight is not in their direct control. Age, sex, genetics all influence weight and we can't directly control those things. A person should focus their change efforts on elements of their life they can control, like their habits, behaviours and routines. A person's weight is not a good indicator of their overall health. A person can improve their health outcomes through consistent healthy behaviour, even if their weight does not change.

Q: What is a weight neutral approach?

A weight neutral approach means that we focus on habits, behaviours and routines that promote long term health for people of all body sizes that do not have the goal of weight loss.

Q: Can more than one person join a video consultation?

No. We use highly secure Telehealth software and only ONE person with the link for the video call will be able to join at one time. Our software does NOT allow for multiple parties with the same video link to join the consultation from two separate devices. If you have a partner, support worker or other individual wanting to join the video consultation, you will need to be in the same location and using the same device. Due to the high volume of clients that we support every week, we are NOT able to use any other software to facilitate multiple attendees at your video consultation. We apologise for any inconvenience that this may cause.

How can you be of help to us with a weight-neutral approach?

Why would my GP refer us to your clinic if you do not do weight loss?

How will a weight neutral approach help my child lose weight?

Why won’t you help my child lose weight without the weight neutral approach?

How will our clinic provide a weight-neutral approach?

What does weight-neutral mean for clients wanting weight loss?

Why do we take a weight-neutral approach?

What is a weight neutral approach?

How come you still have articles or info about weight loss on your website?

Can we use Zoom?

Can more than one person join a video consultation?

I don’t live in Canberra; can I book a consultation?