In addition, it can affect nutrition by harming the physical body and restricting healthy eating habits. In numerous instances, substance abuse will lead to a lack of nutrients in the body. Hence, understanding the importance of nutritional therapy for addiction recovery is essential to achieve a healthy and realistic plan of action. Recovering from substance abuse will usually minimize several risks related to addiction. However, the recovery process is not possible without a healthy body, and it is impossible to achieve a healthy body without having the right balance of nutrients.
At Spark To Recovery, our alcohol and drug addiction treatment center offers a wide array of therapies, including nutrition therapy, to help clients break free from their addictions and start their journey towards a healthier life.
What is Nutritional Therapy?
Nutritional therapy is based on the idea that holistic health can be achieved through an all-rounded approach to both nutrition and lifestyle. It takes on a holistic, foundational approach to health and wellness that places a strong emphasis on having a nutrient-dense, well-prepared, whole food diet paired with a well-balanced way of life.
How Does Nutritional Therapy Work?
Many people considering nutritional therapy in Los Angeles have some important questions that need to be answered. Nutritional therapy is much different from a regular healthy diet. Healthy diets are about maintaining good health, while therapeutic diets are about using specific foods to alleviate or eliminate medical conditions.
Nutritional therapists use foods to give patients the opportunity to experience reduced symptoms and sometimes even heal the body from their medical conditions. These conditions include anything from IBS to alcoholism. By changing the foods in the diet, the goal is to bring balance and health at a cellular level.
Patients undergoing nutritional therapy often need to relearn how to shop, how to cook, how to read product labels and more. Some nutritional approaches still allow people to eat real foods, while others require a liquid nutritional product with a specific ratio of macronutrients and vitamins.
What Addictions can Nutritional Therapy Treat?
The Importance of Nutritional Therapy
Nutritional therapy uses both supplements and dietary changes to identify and address underlying biochemical imbalances and genetic factors that might contribute to an addiction to alcohol. If the brain is being given the nutrients it needs to overcome any genetic and biochemical deficiencies, the individuals who are being treated for alcohol addiction have a higher chance of staying sober.
People who are going for alcohol treatment typically have deficiencies of certain nutrients such as protein and zinc. Hence, treating the nutrient deficiency will allow us to effectively curb the addictions. Another aspect is balancing blood sugar, which has been proven to be an important aspect of staying sober. Healthy eating habits and a well-balanced diet are essential to keep blood sugar constant and curb any alcohol cravings.
How Nutritional Therapy Can Help Certain Conditions
Some diets are designed to reduce inflammation, while others help to remove toxins from the body. The best nutritional therapy in Los Angeles will look holistically at a person to determine the best nutritional plan. Some cases may require a liquid diet with juices and supplemental vitamins. Others may require a patient to learn how to cook their own food in a completely different way.
For example, many patients with autoimmune conditions and cancers respond well to the right nutritional therapy. Someone with an autoimmune disease might require a diet that removes gluten, sugar, and processed foods, and adds in probiotic and prebiotic foods to help improve the gut microbiome. Cancer patients might do well on a fully ketogenic diet or on organic juices only.
Nutritional therapy and diet therapy are highly effective at treating and preventing diabetes, reducing the incidence of heart disease, and even helping people with drug addiction recover more effectively.
When Should You Seek Nutritional Therapy?
Nutritional Therapy FAQs
What is the basis of nutritional therapy?
Nutritional therapy is based on the scientific understanding that each person is unique and their body requires a distinct approach to address underlying health conditions. It’s a holistic approach to treating disease that is based on scientific study and observation.
What is the difference between a dietitian and a nutritional therapist?
A dietitian needs to have a degree, a certification, and specialized training through a nutrition program to practice. Nutritional therapists are currently unregulated and can be from a variety of educational and experiential backgrounds, most likely in holistic health. A dietician can become a nutritional therapist, but a nutritional therapist is not necessarily a dietician. Just like there are different goals with diet and nutrition therapy, there are different career opportunities for dietitians and nutritional therapists.
What is an example of a nutritional therapy plan?
An example of a nutritional therapy plan would be AIP. This is a unique plan with a very restrictive elimination period that allows patients to reintroduce foods one at a time in later stages of the diet. Adherence to the elimination phase is critical and could last as few as 30 days, or for more serious needs, could last longer. AIP is designed to heal the gut so that autoimmune symptoms can subside and in some cases can heal altogether. Patients often need to stay on certain aspects of the diet in order to maintain their healing.
With Spark To Recovery’s help, clients will start to focus on the underlying root causes of addiction, leading to an improvement in their physical health and well-being. The risks of relapse will also decrease significantly. We understand that different people have unique needs in treatment, which is why we design our nutrition therapy to fit the needs of each individual.
For more information about nutritional therapy services, feel free to contact Spark To Recovery today. You can call (855) 805-4508 to schedule a consultation with us.
