Dietitians of Canada

What does a dietitian do?

Dietitians are highly qualified professionals educated in science, management, human development, and health of populations. As trusted professionals, dietitians fill many roles, depending on where they work. Some examples include:

• Nutrition specialists who counsel and support clients to make changes in their eating habits to promote health and prevent chronic illness such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, cancer
• Policy makers who advise government at all levels on population-wide strategies to improve the health of Canadians such as school nutrition guidelines, sodium reduction in processed foods, advertising to children
• Leaders in all aspects of food systems, including the safety and availability of our food, food service management, and food production and marketing
• Researchers who discover new and better ways to enhance patient care, promote health and prevent nutrition-related illnesses
• Educators who prepare future dietitians and other health care professionals for practice