When to see a dietitian about your eating, and how it works in the UK

It's worth seeing a dietitian when your eating worries you, or when a clinician has given you nutrition advice that is hard to live with. In the UK, "dietitian" is a protected title, used only by HCPC-registered professionals. Your GP can refer you to one on the NHS.

Say you've spent a week or two noticing your food rules, and a small question keeps coming back while you wait for the kettle. Is this something to talk to someone about? And if it is, who? When I searched, most of what came up was NHS leaflets written for people who already had a diagnosis or a referral letter in their hand. This page is for the step before that, when it's your eating that worries you.

> Key Takeaways > > - Professional support is the right next step when your eating worries you, food has started to feel frightening, or it takes up much of your day. You don't need to be sure first. > - In the UK, start with your GP, who can refer you to a dietitian on the NHS. Beat, the UK's eating disorder charity, is there for eating-related worry. > - Nutrimelab's 7-week programme works on everyday patterns, such as food rules or comfort eating, in a small group. It can sit alongside a dietitian or GP and never replaces them.

When is professional support the right next step?

Professional support makes sense as soon as a worry about your eating keeps coming back, even if you can't say exactly what is wrong or how serious it is. Your GP can help you work out what kind of support fits, and whether a dietitian is part of it.

You might notice that eating, or not eating, has become the main way you get through hard days, and that this has started to frighten you. Or that thinking about food leaves little room for work, friends or sleep. Sometimes the first sign comes from outside, when someone who loves you says they're worried and you find you can't wave it away.

You may also have been given nutrition advice by a clinician for a health reason and find it hard to live with day to day. A dietitian is the right person to talk to about that, too.

None of this is a checklist, and you don't have to match anything on it to book an appointment.

Who to contact first

Your GP is the first door. They can talk through what's worrying you and look at the whole picture of your health. Where it fits, they can refer you on. If the worry is about eating itself, Beat runs free helplines for each of the four nations.

Before the appointment, write down how long this has been going on and what worries you most about it. In my work I see that a few lines on paper often make it easier to say out loud in a short appointment.

Can I see a dietitian on the NHS?

Yes. On the NHS the usual route is through your GP, who can refer you to a dietitian. Some trusts also take self-referrals, so it's worth checking your local NHS trust or health board's dietetics page. How long you wait varies from area to area. You can also see a dietitian privately, without a referral.

| Route | How it starts | What to check | |---|---|---| | NHS, via your GP | Ask your GP for a referral | Your GP explains what happens next | | NHS, self-referral | Some trusts take self-referrals | Your local NHS trust or health board's dietetics page | | Private | Search the BDA freelance directory | The dietitian's entry on the HCPC register |

If you'd like to ask your GP to refer you, you can say exactly that. Something like "my eating has been worrying me for a few months, and I'd like to talk to a dietitian about it" is a fair place to start, and the notes you wrote beforehand can fill in the rest. If the GP suggests a different first step, ask them to explain why, so you leave knowing what happens next.

To find a dietitian privately, the British Dietetic Association keeps a freelance dietitian directory you can search by location and by how you'd like to meet, such as online, by phone or in person. Whoever you find, you can check their registration on the HCPC register, where you search by name and choose "Dietitian" from the list of professions.

What does a dietitian do?

A dietitian is a health professional who assesses, diagnoses and treats problems with diet and nutrition. In the UK they are registered with the HCPC, they work in hospitals and in the community, and they can give you individual clinical advice about food.

The NHS's Health Careers page on the role describes dietitians as people who "translate the science of nutrition into everyday information about food", working "with both healthy and sick people". The British Dietetic Association's page on what dietitians do adds that they give practical, personalised advice and use the science of nutrition to improve health and treat conditions.

If a food has become frightening

Specialist support is the right next step here. It isn't something to work through alone with an article or a group programme, mine included.

If a food has started to feel frightening, or food takes up much of your day, please talk to your GP, or contact Beat, the UK's eating disorder charity, at beateatingdisorders.org.uk, where you'll find their free helplines.

Where my 7-week programme fits alongside care

Maybe what wears you down is the rules you keep making about bread, and the swing between a "good" Monday and giving up by Thursday. Some evenings the biscuits have more to do with a long day than with hunger, and you can't always tell which is which. If that sounds like you, that is the kind of everyday pattern I work on. If you'd like to start reading now, there are posts on telling whether you're hungry and on why emotional eating isn't a willpower problem.

For those patterns, my 7-week programme is one option. If you're not sure what kind of support fits you, your GP can help you work it out. I'm a public health nutritionist, not a dietitian, so I don't diagnose or treat, and I don't give individual clinical advice. The programme is education, not treatment. A small group meets with me live online, once a week for seven weeks, and each week works on one part of the pattern.

• Week 1, noticing the moments when food takes over, without changing what you eat yet.
• Week 2, emotional eating, and what the food is doing for you in those moments.
• Week 3, food rules, and the swing between being "good" and giving up.
• Week 4, the cues at home and at work that make some eating automatic.
• Week 5, how you see yourself as an eater, and trusting yourself again after a hard day with food.
• Week 6, a flexible rhythm of eating that fits your days and your hunger.
• Week 7, keeping it going after the group ends.

Nothing in the seven weeks asks you to weigh, count, restrict or compensate. The programme can sit alongside a dietitian or your GP, and you can join while you wait for an appointment. If a clinician has given you medical nutrition advice, that advice comes first. If food frightens you or takes up much of your day, please start with your GP or Beat, as above, before a group.

The next small group starts on 5 November and currently has a waitlist.

*[Join the waitlist for Food, family and festive pressure, starting 5 November](/checkout?tier=pro&cohort=Food%2C%20family%20and%20festive%20pressure)*