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Dietitian vs nutritional consultant

The differences between dietitians and nutritional consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a dietitian and a nutritional consultant. Additionally, a nutritional consultant has an average salary of $62,346, which is higher than the $58,480 average annual salary of a dietitian.

The top three skills for a dietitian include patients, medical nutrition therapy and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a nutritional consultant are diabetes, weight loss, and nutrition assessments.

Dietitian vs nutritional consultant overview

DietitianNutritional Consultant
Yearly salary$58,480$62,346
Hourly rate$28.12$29.97
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs6,16415,581
Job satisfaction2.5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 66%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age4242
Years of experience22

What does a dietitian do?

A dietitian's role is to assist clients in their journey to achieve their health goals. Typically, a dietitian's responsibilities revolve around interviewing and assessing a client's diet needs and goals, learning their preferences and restrictions such as allergies, and crafting a personalized nutrition plan. Moreover, it is essential for a dietitian to monitor a client's progress and maintain information on all accounts. There are also instances where one may promote healthy eating habits to the public, all while keeping abreast of the latest nutrition studies.

What does a nutritional consultant do?

A Nutritional Consultant provides assistance regarding food service and nutritional programs. They help patients improve their health and control of disease.

Dietitian vs nutritional consultant salary

Dietitians and nutritional consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.

DietitianNutritional Consultant
Average salary$58,480$62,346
Salary rangeBetween $43,000 And $78,000Between $30,000 And $125,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Jose, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaAlaska
Best paying companyUniversity of CaliforniaWayne County, Michigan
Best paying industryHealth CareAgriculture

Differences between dietitian and nutritional consultant education

There are a few differences between a dietitian and a nutritional consultant in terms of educational background:

DietitianNutritional Consultant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 66%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common majorDieteticsFood And Nutrition
Most common collegeUniversity of Maryland - College ParkUniversity of Maryland - College Park

Dietitian vs nutritional consultant demographics

Here are the differences between dietitians' and nutritional consultants' demographics:

DietitianNutritional Consultant
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 11.7% Female, 88.3%Male, 22.6% Female, 77.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 9.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 9.1% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between dietitian and nutritional consultant duties and responsibilities

Dietitian example responsibilities.

  • Manage the anemia status of patients by reviewing necessary lab data and initiating or adjusting medication doses.
  • Prioritize initial/quarterly/consult assessments, interventions and progress monitoring for long-term care, rehabilitation and post acute patients.
  • Design and provide individualize nutrition counseling to promote healthy behavior modifications for a variety of home health care patients.
  • Counsele post-op patients to ensure dietary compliance, nutritional adequacy and formulation of weight management goals throughout their post-operative course.
  • Perform indirect calorimetry to measure resting metabolic rates (RMR).
  • Work as part of research team on a large-scale NIH clinical trial.
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Nutritional consultant example responsibilities.

  • Manage the in-store dietitian program providing nutrition education, culinary workshops, food demonstrations, and nutritional assessments.
  • Specialize in weight loss, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and lactose intolerance
  • Provide nutrition assessments, counseling and diabetes education to visually impair population individually and in group setting.
  • Ensure compliance to USDA requirements.
  • Conduct BMI and weigh-ins for insurance members during health insurance out reach events.
  • Help clients with food allergies and auto immune disorders to construct a healing diet.
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Dietitian vs nutritional consultant skills

Common dietitian skills
  • Patients, 39%
  • Medical Nutrition Therapy, 9%
  • Rehabilitation, 6%
  • Patient Education, 6%
  • Nutrition Services, 5%
  • Lab Results, 4%
Common nutritional consultant skills
  • Diabetes, 9%
  • Weight Loss, 7%
  • Nutrition Assessments, 6%
  • Food Service, 6%
  • Menu Planning, 5%
  • Medical Nutrition Therapy, 4%

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