Into the Person of interest, we talk to people who draw our attention right now to what they do, eat, read and love. Next is the registered dietitian Vanessa Rissetto, interim director of the NYU Dietetic Internship Program and co-founder of Culina Health.
The nutritional world is divided. But the word “divide” does not even present it accurately, which makes it seem divided in the middle. Is not. About 12.9% of registered dietitians are people of color and hinder the progress of an entire field. It prevents an entire field of medicine from helping people who need it most in their care.
Vanessa Rissetto, a dietitian registered in New Jersey, sees her for what she is: structured, rampant racism. When I talked to Vanessa a few times about her entry into the industry and where she is now, she starts talking quickly, giving up all f bombs and naming names. She becomes animated and eventually exasperated. She is hilarious, warm and will only tell you the truth. Being one of only a handful of black dietitians in the country, she carries an unwarranted burden to make changes in the industry. He does. But she has a few things to say, so I’ll let Vanessa get her out of here. –Alex Beggs, main personal writer
My favorite breakfast As a child, there was an English muffin fried with Cheez Whiz. In college I went through a pack of six Pepsi every three days. So much for Sbarro. I am now the interim director of the dietary internship program at New York University.
Back when I was a student In the NYU nutrition program, my class was with all the rich, thin white women. Years later, not much has changed: 81% of registered dietitians are white. This creates an unbalanced system that has no cultural competencies. Black people are made to feel that our food is bad and unhealthy and that working with a dietitian means eliminating it completely. Every day, while these dietitians complain about diet culture and post expensive collagen powders on Instagram, black people are dying from structural racism in health care.
While I watch the protests all over the world against the devaluation of black lives, it seems to me that this is not only true for the justice system; it is true for all our systems. Black households are 2.5 times more likely to be food insecure than white households. If you are food insecure and promote organic fruits and vegetables as the only way to go, you may resign yourself to believing that your health is not good for you. Black people have higher rates of obesity, heart disease and cancer – not because of the color of their skin, but because they are systemically undertreated and 1.5 times less likely to have health insurance. This is the real reason why they are considered “prone to chronic diseases”. But healthcare works as if the race itself is a biological factor.
I’m a counselor a couple, Harold and Jess, who are black. Harold has diabetes and has worked with a white doctor for four years without success. They told me they were looking for me to be seen and heard. I worked on a nutrition plan with them, and after a few weeks, Harold regained his blood sugar and lost 20 pounds. Jess lost 10 after the association. It should make us all sad that they need a black practitioner to get that basic level of support.
To diversify the field, The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics must limit barriers to entry. The new rules of the Academy will require that in order to participate in the registered dietitian exam, you will have to have completed the master’s degree – another two years of school (while nurses only need one associate). Then you have to do an unpaid internship for a year, while you pay $ 103,000 in tuition. So far, the academy has been non-compromised when discussing how to break down these barriers.
I became a dietitian because I was inspired by someone who saw me as an individual. She listened to my story and made no assumptions based on my race. I do the same for my patients, but we need more. We need to make nutrition education accessible to all. We need to produce more than two out of 100 black dietitians who qualify. We need medical care that listens to people of color when they need our help.