WINDHOEK – A registered dietician has decided to take her services to Katutura in order to reach out to that community with information and services on diet.
Bernadine Mbai who has over 30 years of experience as a dietician told the Health Focus over the weekend that she saw the need to take her services to Katutura over a year ago, primarily because many people are not entirely diet conscious and do not understand the services of dieticians.
“I educate the client or clients on what they should do to improve their overall health. Chronic diseases including diabetes and gout are related to what we eat,” she added.
Apart from the diagnosis which patients come with when they visit the practice, Mbai assesses patients’ nutrition and works out an eating plan accordingly.
“To stay alive we have to eat so I was curious to know what is in the food that makes it medicinal,” explained Mbai on why she chose her career.
Further emphasising the benefits of healthy eating, Mbai stressed that traditional foods should be promoted as they contain nutritional value.
“People have resorted to eating fast food and have no time to prepare home-cooked meals. Advertisements are also not kind to us as most of the food advertised is junk food, so much so that we tend to want to embrace a western lifestyle forgetting that foods like mopane worms are high in protein,” said Mbai.
Located in Kamberipa Street, she extends her services to old age homes, corporates and individuals and wants to work more closely with the community in Katutura, especially because non-communicable diseases are on the rise, shared Mbai who is the only black Namibian dietician.
She believes that people can make the right food choices, even on a limited budget.
“I assist clients with the prevention and management of chronic conditions. I emphasise to my clients the importance of eating vegetables and why the colour of fruits and vegetables matters as part of the diet,” she explained.
She said people with low incomes do not have to feel left out in terms of eating as healthily as possible, suggesting that people could plant their own vegetables which is cheaper than buying in the long run.
She also said the functions of dieticians are misunderstood and urged people to visit dieticians if they are struggling with managing their diet.