Human nutrition is a complex issue, and many people are turning to holistic medicine instead of traditional healthcare practices. As the healthcare industry is growing and changing, it is more important than ever to study functional nutrition. Look beyond the simple dietary changes we should all make and study with us at Everglades University.
What can you do with a degree concentrating on Functional Nutrition? Our functional nutrition degree is actually a Master’s degree that focuses on Public Health with an emphasis on this growing field.
Here is what you should know about our Master’s Degree in Public Health Administration with a concentration in Functional Nutrition and the many ways you can utilize it to help others improve their lives.
What Can You Do with Our Concentration in Functional Nutrition?
The curriculum is designed to allow the student to acquire a Master’s Degree in Public Health Administration as well as prepare him/her for a career in Public Health Administration.
Functional nutritionists don’t always play the same role in the health and healing of their clients. Everglades University offers more than a simple certificate program to help you in your journey to gaining expertise in the emerging field of functional nutrition.
Instead, we offer a full year-long degree program to equip you with the knowledge you need to thrive.
That being said, there is more than one approach to helping people with the role of nutrition in their lives. These career paths will allow you to teach clients about a more holistic approach to their eating habits.
Public Health and Functional Nutritionists
Do you want to make the biggest impact on chronic disease prevention, serving as many people as you possibly can?
It will teach you a new approach to health, which you can apply to the development of new programs and policies that impact wide groups of people. For example, you may influence what gets served in public school lunches or what sort of nutrition infants may require at each stage of development.
You may also work for large-scale organizations that deal in human health and wellness. For example, many graduates go on to work for companies with goals like solving food scarcity and poverty or dealing with the nutrition of children through programs like WIC.
In our functional nutrition concentration, you take 21 hours of public health courses to equip yourself for this type of work. At the completion of the work, you will also have a capstone project to demonstrate an understanding of the role functional medicine plays in this area.
One-on-One Sessions in Private Practice
Specializing in Integrative and Functional Nutrition opens the door to working alongside health professionals to help clients achieve optimal health. If you want to make an impact you can, one individual at a time, then private practice could be a good fit for you.
Educate your clients on how to eat better with whole foods and the role that can play in improving other conditions like diabetes and obesity.
Graduates from our degree program with a concentration in functional nutrition often love the chance to get to know their clients. Often, they work alongside a healthcare professional to help address any of the lingering health concerns a client may have.
You may work within the realm of herbal medicine or alternative medicine to help heal your clients.
Consulting and Opening a Functional Nutrition Business
This is also an opportunity for you to strike out on your own. You may offer consulting services as a solo functional nutritionist rather than working under the umbrella of another business.
If you have a knack for entrepreneurship or want to enroll in an entrepreneurship degree program, this can be a great opportunity to use all of your skills.
Plus, you can telecommute to your sessions, broadening the pool of potential clients who could turn to you for help.
Clinical Nutrition for a Larger Impact
In addition to medical nutrition therapy, you may want to explore a role in clinical nutrition if you want to have a larger impact. People who choose to work in this area are focused on educating larger groups of people on the role of nutrition in functional medicine.
In some cases, you may work one-on-one with clients as you educate them and counsel them through their food choices. However, many people prefer working in family settings or even group therapy settings to affect greater change.
Under the goal of clinical nutrition, you might teach people how to eat better, change their mindset around food, and manage existing conditions like diabetes. A client’s current healthcare practice may make referrals to you for this type of nutrition counseling.
As part of this, you might conduct nutritional assessments. Alternatively, some work with registered dietitians who have met their licensing requirements to complete this groundwork before counseling commences.
Corporate Health Coach for Businesses
Another opportunity that many people don’t think of is corporate opportunities to teach people about what nutrition specialists can offer. Many corporations seek to lower the costs of healthcare for their employees.
Instead, someone with a background in functional nutrition can coach company employees on better eating habits.
As a result, employees tend to have better long-term health outcomes and seek less medical attention from their current healthcare practice.
All of this saves a company money and makes them more likely to have them on board, either as consultants or as full-time staff members. Much like a nutritionist who works in a healthcare setting, you could freelance this work or work from home for a more flexible schedule.
Why Choose Everglades University For A Master’s Degree in Public Health Administration with a Concentration in Functional Nutrition?
If you want a creative learning environment that is about more than a simple certification exam, then Everglades University offers the program you need. Our Master’s degree program features a year-long course that educates you on all the intricacies of public health administration as well as functional nutrition.
Better yet, we offer this program entirely online as well as at our Florida campuses.
If any of these career paths suit you, we would love to talk with you about our eligibility requirements.
Contact our enrollment team today to learn more about this robust and accredited degree program to jumpstart your new career!
