What Is a Public Health Nutritionist?

Public health nutritionists are professionals who are charged with the responsibility of seeing to the nutritional needs of the wider community. Unlike a registered dietitian who works with people on an individual basis, the public health nutritionist is concerned with making sure everyone living in a given area has the ability to receive enough in the way of vitamins and minerals to promote an equitable standard of health. A nutritionist of this type is likely to be associated with a municipal or other government agency, such as a public health department.

The typical public health nutritionist is focused on identifying and resolving problems within the local community. This involves developing and applying a basic set of nutritional policies that form the basis for the public health programs operating within the area. For example, a public nutritionist may be involved in making sure that salt consumed in the area is fortified with iodine in order to minimize the incidence of goiter among the populace. In like manner, the nutritionist may be directly involved in nutrition programs aimed at making sure elderly citizens, shut ins, and families with low incomes have access to basic foods that provide a foundation for good nutrition.

A qualified public health nutritionist may also consider public health careers such as teaching basic nutrition to a subset within the community. For example, the nutritionist may provide diet and nutrition advice to people recently diagnosed with diabetes. Utilizing classes that are scheduled on a recurring basis, the public health nutritionist helps groups of diabetics understand what should and should not be consumed in order to optimize health. This includes teaching the difference between simple and complex carbohydrates, how to balance the body’s need for carbohydrate intake with the elevation of blood glucose levels, and how to identify alternatives for foods that should be eliminated or limited altogether from the daily diet. This may also include drafting a general diabetes nutrition program for diabetics to follow.

In terms of training, many employers require that a public health nutritionist hold a degree related to food and nutrition. Degrees of this type are often available through both local vocational centers and many colleges and universities. In addition, applying for most public health jobs of this type will also require that the individual be registered and certified locally as a dietitian. In addition, additional studies focused on a particular aspect of public nutrition may be necessary before the public health nutritionist can be considered for a particular position.

Local municipalities typically provide information to interested parties on any public health jobs that are currently available in the immediate area. In addition, there are now networking web sites that allow qualified candidates to identify opportunities for public health careers as a nutritionist in many different cities and towns around the world.