Raised on a Mediterranean diet under the influence of his Greek heritage, dietitian Stelios Sioutis (BNutDiet ’11) has found the diet has become an essential component of his work.
A Flinders University Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics graduate, Stelios says he’s proud to be an allied health professional because it gives him a chance to make a big difference in his community.
‘The Mediterranean diet just kept popping up in the media and then the research as being a valid and helpful approach for reducing inflammation, helping people’s mental health and reducing cardiovascular risk, so it’s become an essential part of the way I work,’ says Stelios.
‘I found myself weaving it into helping people in different scenarios, whether that be people at risk of cardiovascular disease, people with mental health concerns or eating disorders. It formed the essential foundation that the advice comes from.’
Following his studies at Flinders, Stelios established his dietetic practice, Nutrition Health Experts in 2014. The practice offers services for people seeking dietary advice for weight management, eating disorder recovery, food intolerance diagnosis, nourishment during oncology treatment, and chronic disease management.
Stelios has been expanding his focus into Mental Health Nutrition, an emerging field of nutrition, dietetic and psychological sciences that explores the changes that nutritional interventions can make to one’s mental health.
‘You find that mental health is interwoven into all the behaviours related to physical health so skilling-up to match the need is something I’ve worked really hard on. I feel that I’ve gotten to the point where I can be a mental health focused dietitian.
‘I’m working at the Statewide Eating Disorder Service in a day program, working among a group of people who are the frequent flyers into the hospital system.
‘I’m really proud that I’ve been able to diversify from physical health into the combination of physical and mental health.’
Flinders University has been educating allied health professionals for more than 40 years. The University offers degrees in audiology, exercise physiology, nutrition and dietetics, occupational therapy, optometry, physiotherapy and speech pathology, psychology and social work, read more