Our integrative approach to nutrition is based on many years of working with foods and supplements to promote health and healing.  We believe that food serves as the foundation, while supplements can be used in a very targeted way to provide numerous biological benefits.  Our Nutrition Educator, who received his Master of Science degree in Nutrition from the UNC School of Public Health & Medicine, has been guiding people in the art of self-care and helping them promote extraordinary wellness and vitality for over 25 years.  In addition, through his work as a health writer and medical journal editor, he has had the opportunity to interview health experts from all over the world on cancer, diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, sleep disorders and many other health problems.  His primary role is to help people identify critical health-related information and resources for a given health situation.  Along with helping you create your own personalized plan of action for optimal health promotion, he offers ongoing support for those who may need periodic guidance.

Integrative Health Coaching:  Pathways to Optimal Health 

The primary purpose of our Integrative Health Coaching (IHC) sessions is to teach you specific nutritional, herbal, and lifestyle strategies that will help promote optimal health, vitality, and disease resistance.  The specific nutritional, fitness and mind-body information you receive during the session and afterward will be individually tailored in order to meet your unique needs.  Note:  An initial one-hour session is recommended, and this may be followed by a series of shorter sessions spread out over weeks or months.  Major discounts are available for people who commit to a series of IHC sessions.  Many people may find the 1-hour IHC session to be sufficient to meet their basic needs.  Others may require additional sessions to help them stay on track with a health regimen, to focus on topics of specific interest or concern, or to follow up on the results of testing or scheduled medical treatments.  There is also the option of meeting with the Carolina Center’s Integrative Medical Team after the initial session, in order to combine elements of the IHC plan with a medical plan laid out by the Medical Director

 Discounts are offered for people who commit to a series of sessions

Nutrition Education for People with Cancer 

Cancer is a complex disease, and its effective treatment and long-range control require innovative thinking and a multifaceted, research-based approach.  The primary focus of conventional oncology is to attack and ultimately eliminate the cancer itself.  Nutritional strategies against cancer can complement this focus by creating the biochemical conditions that discourage the cancer’s growth and progression.  In addition, nutritional strategies can be used to enhance the effectiveness of conventional treatments, reduce toxic side effects, and bolster your health and vitality during and after the treatments.  Finally, nutritional and botanical factors can play a critical role in sustaining remissions after treatments have been completed.  Our Nutrition Educator’s approach is based on many years of collaborating with experts in the field of integrative cancer care.  This approach is designed to give you practical guidance in self-care strategies that will optimize long-range survivorship and help you feel calm and empowered as you navigate your cancer journey.

Nutrition Education for People with Cardiovascular Disease 

Studies of the relationship between nutrition and cardiovascular disease (notably atherosclerosis) have focused mainly on the impact of dietary fat intake on blood lipids and the development of heart disease.  However, recent research suggests that the diet-heart relationship extends far beyond dietary fat intake to specific protective nutrients, such as vitamin C, mixed tocopherols, flavonoids, and coenzyme Q10, as well as food factors that ward off chronic inflammation. Our Nutrition Education sessions will teach you dietary and supplemental strategies that will help stop vascular damage and other aspects of cardiovascular disease, while laying the groundwork for creating a vibrantly healthy heart and circulatory system.

Nutrition Education for People with Diabetes 

Diabetes mellitus is a condition in which a person has a high blood sugar or glucose level as a result of the body either not producing enough insulin or not responding to the insulin that is being produced.  Insulin resistance, the body’s inability to utilize insulin properly, appears to be a common feature and a possible contributing factor to type 2 diabetes mellitus as well as other serious health problems such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, hypertension, and certain hormone-sensitive cancers. Through our Nutrition Education sessions, you will learn about dietary and lifestyle factors that can help reduce insulin resistance and optimize blood sugar control and long-range health after a diagnosis of diabetes.

Nutrition Education for People with Arthritis 

Ostoeoarthritis is a “wear and tear disease” that involves a gradual loss of cartilage and development of bony spurs and cysts at the margins of the joints.  Rheumatoid arthritis is a painful inflammatory joint disease that usually begins in the fingers before spreading to other joints and causing various deformities.  Conventional management of both forms of arthritis primarily focuses on the relief of symptoms, using agents such as analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).  These drugs, however, are linked with significant side effects and usually fail to slow the progression of joint damage.  Our Nutrition Educator will teach you about the benefits of a targeted anti-inflammatory diet as well as nutritional and botanical supplements that have been shown to be at least as effective as NSAIDs at relieving the symptoms of osteoarthritis and even altering the course of this common disease.  While the response of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers to nutritional interventions is more variable, some individuals have shown dramatic improvement or even complete and long-lasting remission.

Nutrition Education for People with Osteoporosis 

Osteoporosis is an overall decrease in bone mass that typically affects post-menopausal white women but also many elderly men.  The main risk of having this disease is broken bones—crush fractures of the vertebrae, upper thigh bone, wrist bones, and hip bones.  Nutritional and lifestyle interventions (e.g., bone-bearing exercise) can help curb and halt the development of osteoporosis. To help avert the development or progression of osteoporosis, our Nutrition Educator emphasizes the benefits of a compehensive dietary and supplement approach, along with strategies to improve absorption of intestinal calcium and improve vitamin D status.  This approach is highly individualized and may be combined with hormone testing in order to assess anabolic factors that support optimal bone health.

Nutrition Education for People with Degenerative Neurological Conditions 

Degenerative neurological conditions are increasing in prevalence as our aging population continues to expand.  These disorders include Multiple Sclerosis, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s Disease, and Parkinson’s Disease.  Although the causes and mechanisms are complex, research in nutritional science has shed light on the many ways in which diet and supplementation can impact the course of these conditions.  For example, reducing oxidative stress (excess free radicals) with the help of specific nutritional and botanical agents can help promote healthy brain aging.  In addition, a number of “brain-specific” nutrients have been found in controlled studies to enhance memory and prevent age-related cognitive decline.  Our Nutrition Educator will share with you practical implicaitons of the research on nutritional strategies that hold the greatest promise for preventing and possibly reversing these degenerative neurological problems.

Nutrition Education for Children within the Autism Spectrum 

Autism Spectrum Disorders—including Autism, Asperger syndrome, and pervasive development disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)—generally manifest as impaired thinking, poor communication, and a limited ability to interact socially.  There is some evidence that many children with ASDs are born with a reduced capacity to neutralize and eliminate toxins from their bodies.  Moreover, various nutrient deficiencies have been documented in children with ASDs, and targeted nutritional strategies are often very helpful and again make other strategies more effective.  In addition, certain “trigger” foods can perpetuate behavioral problems linked with ASDs.  Our Nutrition Educator will teach you about those foods and supplements that can best support your child’s overall behavioral harmony and stability.  Although this approach is most effective in very young children (under age 4), it confers some benefits to older children as well.

Nutrition Education for Children with ADHD or Learning Disabilities 

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a very common disorder that may affect many children and results in considerable disruption in the classroom setting.  Inability to focus or pay attention is the hallmark sign of this disorder, and in many children it is accompanied by hyperactive and impulsive behaviors.  Many children with ADHD also suffer from low self-esteem and poor performance in school.  There is increasing evidence that children with ADHD show a tremendous reduction in symptoms when they follow a largely plant-based diet free of gluten and casein; others respond very well to a diet that avoids all food additives.  Certain “brain-specific” nutrients can also be very helpful in promoting calm focus in your child.  Our Nutrition Educator teaches parents and young adults cutting-edge strategies that are most likely to prevent and reverse ADHD tendencies.

Nutrition Education for Optimal Weight & Body Composition

The Carolina Center’s Integrative Weight Loss Program embraces four cutting-edge plans for promoting a healthier, leaner body composition and improved long-range weight control.  The first three programs utilize different combinations of lean meals, meal options, superfood shakes, and supplements—all designed to help you establish and maintain a leaner physique.  The fourth program utilizes several carefully formulated homeopathic preparations that enable you to follow a low-calorie diet and assist with detoxification.  If you have a serious weight problem, our Nutrition Educator will likely encourage you to commit to regular sessions (either weekly, biweekly, or monthly) to help stay you on track with your chosen program.  In addition, Dr. Pittman is available to address medical weightloss issues and for people who would like individualized testing (e.g., nutritional, metabolic and hormonal testing).  As health educators, we will work closely with you to help you develop a personalized approach to optimal weight, wellness and body composition.