Having a good diet has become a luxury these days as everything we eat has something artificial in it. To choose the right diet, we need professionals with good experience to guide us. Vriti Srivastav is a seasoned dietitian with over a decade of experience transforming lives through nutrition.
She doesn’t need to go anywhere to get motivated as positive feedback from clients gives her the energy to work more and more. Vriti shares valuable content on her social media platforms addressing common fears around nutrition.
IcyTales is conversing with Vriti Srivastav, where she enclosed how her journey has started to improve other people’s lives by guiding them with the right nutritional advice.
Q) Can you share your journey as a dietitian over the past decade and how your approach to nutrition has evolved during this time?
Vriti Srivastav — When I stepped out into the world of nutrition after my masters, the approach for say a weight loss diet was more about eating small frequent meals. This eventually was redundant after research suggested that such an eating pattern isn’t right for insulin response in the body.
Over the last 10 years of my practice, my views on nutrition and its approach have only evolved as we dived deeper into research. My approach for years now has been to work on every person individually by understanding their body and mind. Working on the cellular level to nourish each part of the body, internally and emotionally has been an essential approach.
Q) Could you share a memorable success story or piece of feedback that has had a significant impact on your career?
Vriti Srivastav — One of my clients (55 yrs) had a dilated pulmonary artery and was very scared of getting further treatments done for the same. The doctor had given her one month to work on her lifestyle. She was extremely dedicated and we worked on her diet, routine, and fitness.
On the 28th day, she had her doctor’s appointment. The moment she stepped out of the clinic she gave me a call and with a very happy voice informed me that the arterial effusion had reversed and no further treatment was required.
Q) Could you provide some examples of misleading food labels and share tips on how consumers can make informed choices despite these labels?
Vriti Srivastav — Most front labels of commercial foods have nutrient-related information to attract consumers. Some of them are – diet food, cholesterol-free, gluten-free, trans-fat-free, iron-rich, vitamin-rich, low sugar or sugar-free, multi-grains, etc
Multigrain foods do not mean that all grains used to prepare them are whole grains. Breads can have refined flour as a major ingredient along with other whole grains and yet be called multi-grain bread. The same goes for pasta or other foods.
Tips for reading food labels
– Ingredients are always listed in descending order. The first ingredient is present in the highest amount and last in the lowest amount. Make sure the first three ingredients are healthy ones.
– A product that has a long ingredient list wherein you do not understand most of the ingredients, means the product might be highly processed.
– Look for hidden sugar names such as inverted syrup, dextrose, corn syrup, liquid glucose, high fructose corn syrup, fructose, etc. These are added in addition to sugar in many processed foods.
– Do not fall for the product just by looking at the attractive front labels. Read the ingredient labels and nutrition labels.
Q) As a seasoned dietitian, what do you see as the most common obstacles that prevent individuals from sticking to a healthy diet, and how do you help them overcome these challenges?
Vriti Srivastav — The most common obstacle that I observe is a mental block associated with the word diet. The other is, giving eating priority over their work, mid-meal snacking out of boredom, and midnight eating while watching the television.
It is important to understand that trusting the process and giving the body time to show results. Getting attracted to shortcut methods and comparing their results with others is not correct.
I help them overcome these challenges through holistic counseling wherein I understand every person’s routine, eating pattern, likes and dislikes, symptoms, emotional state, and motivation level and plan the guidance accordingly. Moreover, I am in constant touch through follow-ups to help them pave their way through the hurdles they might face.
Q) In 2020, you hosted a podcast titled “Why Do We Dread Dieting?” Can you elaborate on the key insights or takeaways from that podcast and how they apply to everyday challenges in maintaining a healthy diet?
Vriti Srivastav – The word ‘diet’ has been used and abused for ages now. With so many fad diets coming up and people trying out diets without any guidance, there are several negative experiences associated with it.
Today when people approach me for guidance, some are switching their dietitian because the previous diet could not fit into their routine at all and made them feel more depressed with hunger pangs and boring foods.
There are also people enquiring whether the diets I shall provide will have any juice diets or crash diets since they do not want to do so. I assure them that I do not support such diets at all and that all diets are always personalized.
Q) What’s one essential tip or advice you often share with your followers about maintaining a balanced diet?
Vriti Srivastav — To focus on that one simple thing that is ignored by most people – Chewing the food, eating slowly, focusing on your food while eating, and eating till you are 80% full. Following just these will help solve digestive issues related to cravings and binging.
Q) Lastly, what advice would you give to someone who is just starting their journey toward a healthier diet and lifestyle, and what are the first steps they should take?
Vriti Srivastav — Seek guidance and consider a dietitian’s fee as a lifetime health investment. Low-priced diet plans might look attractive but they work blindly on your body. Speak at length with the dietitian over a call or meet and state all your issues, understand the process thoroughly, and then finalize the program if it suits you. Shift your focus from the money involved to the healthy outcome. Give your 100% while working with your dietitian.
Vriti Srivastav commits to provide her clients with the right guidance and break the common myths they have. Her fundamental advice centers on mindful eating, focusing on chewing and satisfaction. Those seeking to have a healthier lifestyle and are impressed by Vriti’s experience and approaches can book a consultation with her by DMing her.
Last Updated on by Mehar Jolly
