Edina Nutritionist Offers Online Support Programs

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - During the holiday season, while we're enjoying our favorite foods and probably splurging a little bit, it's easy to get off course.

A Twin Cities mom didn't realize how badly she felt until she had continued down that road for a while, but she found a new start through a prescription for nutrition.

Like lots of moms, Sue Newton has her hands full.

"They're bouncing off the walls most of the days," she said. "It's just survival mode."

Before twins, Will and Sam, came along, she and her husband exercised regularly and fixed healthy meals.

"We took care of ourselves because we had time," she said.

But soon after their birth, her diet, and her health, started to suffer.

"You're just worried about, 'Are they getting what they need?' and you kind of just forget about what you need for yourself," she said. "My husband and I were so tired [that we'd] reach for things that are going to give us instant energy--a lot of caffeine, sugar."

Enter Prescribe Nutrition.

Co-founders, Katie Jasper, an Edina native, and Megan Morris, who lives in San Francisco, are nutritionists. The two found a common thread when counseling clients.

We're "clearing out some of the junk that's in their diets, inserting more whole foods, and then teaching them the whys of what works and what doesn't," Jasper said.

They wanted to reach more people, so they launched an interactive website.

Clients sign up for a two-week program. During that time, they get meal plans, recipes, live discussion boards and someone to answer questions.

"It's like having a nutritionist pager," Jasper said. "You have a question, and you get an answer during that period."

"Life is different now and we're all online all day every day so why not adapt to that, to give it that personal touch," Morris said.

The team found the right ingredients to make nutrition understandable and to help clients make real choices for real life.

"It's remarkable how for many people, just transforming your kitchen and your daily habits can literally change the way you feel on a daily basis," Morris said.

The team has done 27 programs for people in 14 countries since launching in 2012.

The cost of a program compares to one 1-hour consultation with Jasper or Morris.

"It's amazing what I've learned about how I can just feel better," Newton said. "It took us about a year to come out of this fog. We just needed a re-set."

Newton believes participating in a program that offered real-time support is what helped get her health back on track.

Her rheumatoid arthritis, which surfaced during pregnancy, is under control, and she found more energy for her most important job of mom.

"I think for me it was really spending the time to remove things from your diet that could be triggers for you," she said.

Programs are offered throughout the year.

The next program, Holiday Disaster Prevention, kicks off on Dec. 8, and a new program, Prescribe 20. kicks off after the New Year. Prescribe Nutrition is offering 20 percent off to WCCO viewers. Just type in WCCO when you check out.

The team also recently completed a successful Indiegogo campaign to launch a recipe site where people can sign up to search for meals according to things like: dietary needs, chronic health conditions, what you can make with the leftovers in your fridge.

Click here to learn more about Prescribe Nutrition.