Cece Davis Focuses on Nutrition for Clients
By K.J. WEBB
Editor at Large
STAYING FIT: Cece Davis, RD, CSSD, LD (center), with daughter Connie Bendel, RD, LD (left) and Rene Norman, RD, LD. All three are associates with Nutrition Consultants of Tulsa.
Courtesy NCT
Cece Davis, RD, CSSD, LD and owner of Nutrition Consultants of Tulsa (NCT) has been guiding and counseling clients about their nutrition and health for over 30 years. Davis opened her practice in 1979 after working as a Clinical Dietician at St. Francis Hospital. “The cardiologists started asking me why I was there,” she says. “They kept telling me to get out and open my own practice, and help people prevent heart attacks.” Davis followed their advice and became the second person in the state of Oklahoma to open a private practice as a registered dietitian.
Davis’ work combines the science of nutrition with client counseling into nutrition therapy. “There’s an important psychological component as to why we eat the way we do,” Davis says. “Part of my job is to help my clients understand the reasons and motivations behind their dietary habits and work through them. I empower my clients to improve their health and lives.”
When asked what her typical client is like, Davis says, “My clients come from all walks of life. There is no typical demographic other than being a person who wants to confront eating, health and dietary issues, to find out what’s eating them as opposed to what they are eating, and to make positive, lasting changes.”
Davis offers an example of one of her clients, a business owner in his late forties, father of four, coaching two of his kids’ teams. He needs to lose 50 pounds, can’t find the time to exercise and is dealing with self-disappointment. “My job is to help him to establish realistic expectations for himself and keep him on track with his nutrition choices and goals. It’s a total lifestyle change and this requires lots of coaching and guidance,” Davis says.
Some of Davis’ clients require more than nutrition therapy, however. “I do have some clients who are dealing with trauma or eating disorders that require specialized trauma counseling and/or psychological counseling in addition to nutrition therapy,” she says. “I refer these clients to the appropriate professional and we work together to heal and empower these individuals.” Davis points out that anorexia (self starvation), bulimia, and compulsive overeating are major issues that involve compulsive behaviors, which affect brain chemistry. “The brain’s chemistry is changed with the ingestion of carbohydrates. It increases the dopamine response; dopamine is a neurotransmitter that brain processes that affect the ability to experience pleasure, and it plays a role in addiction,” says Davis.
The result, she says, of compulsively ingesting large amounts of carbohydrates is that it takes more and more carbohydrates over time to effect the same dopamine response. Typically, the people suffering from eating disorders that come to Davis are tired of the shame and guilt that accompany eating disorders, and they are fearful of the physical damage they are doing to their bodies and want to be in recovery.
Eating disorder is one of three areas Davis specializes in; the other two are sports nutrition and food allergies. Davis says one of the challenges with sports nutrition is clients understanding that in order to increase strength and endurance they need more calories than they typically realize. “I have a 40 year old client, a successful stockbroker and father of two, who wants to run three triathlons a year. He is on an extremely demanding training schedule, and when he came to me he was only eating 1,400 calories per day.”
Davis says, “This was a dangerously low number of calories. This level of exertion, and this low level of calories, results in depriving the brain of the glucose it needs to function, resulting in mental confusion.” Through nutrition therapy, Davis helped her client develop a sports nutrition plan with the appropriate number of calories, and the appropriate nutrients to maximize his health and athletic performance.
Regarding food allergies, Davis says that often clients come to her with a long list of foods they believe they can’t eat because they experienced symptoms of an allergic reaction. “I work with an allergist to determine the specific foods that my clients are allergic to. We get to the point of what is actually causing the problem.” Davis points out that it’s often the case that a person is not allergic to a food preparation, but typically just one ingredient in it.
When asked if there are any common misperceptions about dietitians, Davis says, “Yes there are. People often confuse the terms “dietitian” and “nutritionist.” Anyone can call him or herself a nutritionist. It doesn’t require a degree. A registered dietitian denotes a college degree, state and national board certification and adherence to professional standards and regulations.” There is also a much higher likelihood that dietitians’ work is science-based. Davis’ own curriculum included many science courses such as physiology, chemistry, organic chemistry and anatomy.
Davis’ clients clearly benefit from her knowledge of the science of nutrition as well as the psychology involved in her counseling. “People come to me when they need help, guidance, information, when they want to make a lifestyle change, when they need a coach, and when they need accountability.”
She adds, “We all need support, and we all need accountability partners to help us stay on track.” Staying on track is a lifelong process. Davis mentions some crucial times during the process to see a dietitian: life transitions; lifestyle changes or health consequences and challenges; life cycle changes when our nutrient needs change such as during adolescence, pregnancy and lactation, and times of high stress or disease. “Proper nutrition is essential to getting the most out of life, and the good news is that more and more people are realizing the importance of this and coming to get the guidance, counseling, coaching and nutrition therapy they need. It also gives me the opportunity to really make a difference in people’s lives.”
When asked what she enjoys most about her work, Davis enthusiastically replies, “Making a difference and helping people. I love helping people to feel good psychologically and physically. I get tremendous joy and satisfaction out of this. I’m fortunate to be able to work with people, help them, and love what I do.”
For more information about Nutrition Consultants of Tulsa visit www.nutritiontulsa.com or call (918) 749-9077.
Updated 08-10-2010
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