..:: Make Career as Dietician (Nutritionists) in India ::..
What is it about?
A nutritionist is someone who advises you about a healthy diet. This field takes into consideration age, gender, sickness, physiological conditions like growth or pregnancy etc. Apart from this the patient's lifestyle, sports or activity, cultural background also has a major role in diet planning. A nutritionist to be successful needs a sound knowledge of physiology, biochemistry, psychology, cooking etc.
Working hour for a Dietician :-
Clinical/hospital dietitians/nutritionist provide nutritional services for patients in institutions such as hospitals and nursing homes. On a typical day a clinical dietician will assess patients' nutritional needs, develop and implement nutrition programmes and evaluate and report the results and coordinate with nurses, doctors, hospital kitchen and food service staff for the same. Food service dieticians/nutritionists over see large-scale meal planning and preparation in health care facilities, company cafeterias, prisons and schools. On a typical day a management dietician will plan and budget cyclic menus. Train and direct other dieticians and food service workers; enforce sanitary and safety regulations and prepare records & reports. Consultant dieticians/nutritionist work under contract with healthcare facilities or in their own private practice. On a typical day a consultant dietician will perform nutrition screenings for their clients and offer advice on diet related concerns such as weight loss or cholesterol reduction.
The Payoff for a Dietician :-
As a 2009, remuneration paid to nutritionists employed in the public sector, hospitals and as nutrition teachers was anywhere between Rs. 8000 to Rs. 15,000 a month. In the private sector, companies and five star hotel's nutritionist are paid much higher salaries and incentives between Rs. 9000 to Rs. 25,000. Private consulting earns a professional nutritionist much more.
Skills required to become a Dietician :-
- Apart from being good communication, a nutritionist should be good at biology, physiology, chemistry, bio chemistry, psychology and cooking.
- They need to be good listeners and possess analytical and decision making qualities.
- Organisational and managerial qualities will give them extra mileage.
How do I get there?
Opt for a college offering home science after 10th or after 12th Science (with biology/microbiology) you can switch over to a graduate degree in home science specializing in nutrition or dietetics as a major. After graduation, you can pursue a diploma in dietetics or sports nutrition.
Further studies such as a Masters, M Phil and PhD can also be done after graduation.
Institutes & URLS :-
- Nirmala Niketan, Mumbai
- SNDT University, Mumbai
- University of Madras, Chennai
- Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai
- Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam
- Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore
- Maharaja Syajirao University of Baroda, Baroda (Vadodara)
- Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology, Udaipur
- Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad
- Allahabad Agricultural institute, Allahabad
- Central Food Technological Research institute, Mysore
- Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi
- Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad
- Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra
- Lady Irwin College, New Delhi
- National Institute of Nutrition (NTR University of Health Science), Hyderabad
- Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana
- All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health (Calcutta University)
- Institute of Home Economics, New Delhi
- Sri Ramchandra medical College and Research Institute, Porur, Chennai
Pros and Cons for a Dietician :-
- Knowledge about food hence healthy food habits.
- Meeting with resistance when motivating people to change their lifestyle and adopt healthy food habits.
