Treatment with Dr. Shapiro

Dr. Susan Shapiro wants to show people the right way to eat and help clients conquer their fear of food. As a licensed psychologist and registered dietician, she combines her passions to help people deal with emotions and food. The guiding principal of her practice is "advancing a healthy mind-body connection" and it is exemplified in her approach. In helping people understand their relationship with food, Shapiro often shows clients that their misuse of food can be an addiction. An addiction specialist, Shapiro laments that food addiction doesn't get same respect in the medial community as cocaine or alcohol addiction. "It doesn't come across as something scientific.

But it's a problem for a lot of people. And unlike other addictions, you can't not eat. You have to eat at least three of four times a day." Rather than prescribe special diets and tell clients what they can and can't eat, she teaches people "how to eat," so they can make wise choices. "They can be in any situation, eating out in a Mexican or Italian restaurant, and always find something they can eat," Shapiro says. "They may not always get exactly what they want, but it will be a nutritious and healthy choice. "Too many people want to know how to be on a diet and still cheat." Shapiro said, "If they know how to eat, that's not a problem. I know people who've been on a diet for 10 years and gained 10 pounds."

Nutrition is a science-based field, Shapiro points out. "You have to know what you are putting into your body. The body doesn't know it's eaten a piece of cheese; the body thinks it's eating, among other things, protein, calcium and amino acids." There is a science to eating, Shapiro said. "The body needs minerals and proteins. People can go a for a long time, not eating the right foods, and can be anemic and malnourished. The body can still function, but if people are under stress and hungry, they can't think properly. A lot of people don't feel it until the afternoon; a lot of snacking and binge eating goes on after 3 p.m."

A first step in working with clients is having them bring in food records of what they've eaten in a week. She evaluates the report based on protein, fat and carbohydrate contents. Most of the time, she says, the diets are high in protein and fat and low in carbohydrates. "People think they can't have carbs," Shapiro said. "The problem
is that bread, pasta and potatoes get turned into high-fat food when they are covered with butter, sour cream and heavy sauces. "I had one client who wouldn't eat an once-and-a-half roll. She said, 'I'll put on 25 pounds.'" After her evaluation, she and the client develop a workable food plan together.

Shapiro counsels clients to drink milk, get iron for red blood, eat eggs, avoid high-sugar fruit and candy bars and get sugar from fruits, vegetables and grains. She recommends wholegrain bread instead of refined, "where the main ingredient is corn syrup "People also don't eat much for breakfast," Shapiro said. "They don't eat enough long-term carbs, and are starting the day is a state of starvation."

Shapiro's three-pronged approach to her practice includes psychotherapy, Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT) and treatment for people with eating disorders. As an MNT she works with people with a variety of medical conditions, including diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease, cancer and gastrointestinal diseases.