The functional approach to health involves more than just diet. It includes an in-depth assessment of lifestyle, history, exposures, current diagnoses along with dietary patterns to discover the root cause of your health issue.
My Approach
I specialize in conditions affecting gut health (IBS, SIBO, etc), thyroid conditions, food sensitivities and unexplained illness. These conditions often come with frustratingly vague symptoms that can severely impact your daily life. If you just don’t feel well despite trying everything else and it’s keeping you from enjoying life, then you are in the right place.
These common symptoms or concerns are key elements to your healing but are often ignored in a traditional medical setting:
- Constant and/or extreme fatigue
- Brain fog, unable to think clearly
- Excess gas, bloating and/or constipation/diarrhea after any meal
- Anxious, racing mind
- Unexplained weight gain or loss
- Lack of interest in activities you used to enjoy, especially social or sexual
- You catch every bug and are slow to heal
- Pain in joints or muscles
- Chronic headaches or migraines
- Skin issues such as redness, itching, dryness, flaking
- You don’t feel well but doctors say your test results are “normal”
- You have a diagnosis (IBS, SIBO, PCOS, Hashimoto’s, food sensitivity) but are not responding to standard treatment
- Other providers dismiss your symptoms as “part of getting older” or due to “stress”
If any or all of these apply to you, I can help. We can figure it out together. The first step is to do a full functional assessment.
Functional Nutrition Assessment
These are the three main steps in a functional assessment:
LISTEN
to your story
When did your health issue begin and what factors may have preceded it? Triggering events like stress, infection and toxic exposure can be the starting point of an autoimmune condition or chronic illness.
DISCOVER
your imbalances
Poor gut health, inflammation or even dysregulation at a cellular level can contribute to health issues. For example, long-term antibiotic use can disrupt the bacterial balance in your gut. Even if you are eating the best diet, you may not be absorbing all of those nutrients.
IDENTIFY
your triggers
Diet, stress, movement, relationships and sleep all affect your health. We've all heard about the dangers of smoking. What about the dangers of eating foods, even "healthy" ones, that can trigger inflammation in YOUR gut.
Your Plan
Based on the assessment and my recommendations, we will prioritize the areas you want to work on first. I will create a personal nutrition care plan with detailed guidance on what to do, how to do it and where to find help or resources if you need them.
Your plan addresses five focus areas:
Lifestyle – exercise, movement, self-care, sleep, hydration, stress management, etc
Labs – review current labs, prioritized testing from your doctor or tests I can order for you
Resources – apps, websites, blogs, books, stores, brands, etc
Supplements – what and how to take for best results
Diet – foods to eat/avoid, portions, macros, timing, meal balance, etc
Your Progress
How will you know if the plan is working? We start with a baseline assessment of your symptoms, using a symptom tracker. It provides a “score” based on the frequency and severity of your symptoms.
You will repeat the assessment throughout our time together. This allows us to track your progress and know when it’s time to add more goals or make some changes.
Are you ready for change? Let’s get started!
About Val
Val Evanoff is a Registered Dietitian, certified in Functional Medicine and food sensitivity testing (LEAP MRT). Her practice focuses on women’s health issues, primarily digestive, thyroid and autoimmune conditions. Her passion is helping her clients discover the power of food and lifestyle changes to drive healing and recovery from chronic illness.