Nutrition counselors provide stress management counseling during nutrition interventions. List and describe the five major categories nutrition counselors should address.

When providing stress management counseling, the nutrition counselor should (1) explain reactions to stress, (2) explain the impact of stress on food behaviors, (3) review symptoms of stress, (4) investigate what is causing stress, and (5) discuss methods and resources to address stress. Nutrition counselors should explain to clients what is going on in our bodies when we are stressed (e.g., physiological arousal and internal monologue). Next, nutrition counselors should explain how stress could impact our food behaviors such as using food to calm our stress. Then, nutrition counselors should explain to clients that certain symptoms could indicate we are stressed, such as increased fat around the abdomen or higher cholesterol levels. After that, nutrition counselors should help clients investigate what is causing stress by conducting an assessment. Finally, methods and resources that would be helping in reducing and managing stress should be discussed. This could include providing a client with community resource options or recommended books or Internet sources.